RBI likely to allow banks to accept delayed loan repayments from customers

The Reserve Bank is likely to allow banks to give relaxation to customers in paying their EMIs as the forced lockdown across sectors due to coronavirus pandemic has impacted earnings severely, crippling repaying capacity of many businesses and individuals, sources said.

"There has been a demand for this, it will require some dispensation from the Reserve Bank actually. IBA has already discussed the issue with the RBI. This is under consideration," a bank official told PTI.

The banker said that the issue of delayed EMI (equated monthly instalment) is under active consideration of the government.

In a major relief, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced waiver of charges for withdrawals from any ATMs as well as doing away of the minimum balance requirement till June this year.

SBI had already announced to do away with the minimum balance requirement a few days earlier.

Many industry representatives have already demanded the government to allow late repayment of loans as businesses are badly hit due to no activity as the spread of coronavirus has led to a forced lockdown across the nation as well as globally.

While, individuals mainly who are self-employed, have small businesses, have to pay towards rents for shops, small vendors etc have taken loans for various purposes such as home, car, business or any other personal requirements are more concerned about their immediate loan liabilities.

A bank customer who runs a business and has to pay up towards loan will have to pay up from savings as there has been no business recently.

Coronavirus has claimed thousands of lives globally in the past three months and has been spreading fast globally.

As a proactive measure to cut short the spread of this deadly disease Covid-19, central government as well as states have announced major lockdown, shutting borders and strict policing to keep people indoors.

In India, as many as nine deaths are reported from Covid-19, while more than 500 are reported to have caught the disease.