Jio Payments Bank plans India's 1st auto-investing savings account: Decoded

The Payments Bank is soon going to launch an innovative new product, called Savings Pro, which will bring to customers India's first savings account that auto-invests idle cash in overnight MFs

Your idle money lying in a savings account may soon work harder for you. Jio Payments Bank (JPB) announced on Thursday that it is mulling rolling out “Savings Pro”, a first-of-its-kind product in India that will automatically invest unused deposits into overnight mutual funds—a move that could boost returns for millions of customers.

 

Addressing shareholders at the annual general meeting, Jio Financial Services' managing director and chief executive Hitesh Sethia said "The Payments Bank is soon going to launch an innovative new product, called Savings Pro, which will bring to customers India's first savings account that auto-invests idle cash in overnight mutual funds for better returns."

 

 

Why this matters

 

Most Indians keep surplus money in savings accounts, often earning very little interest—sometimes even lower than inflation. At Jio Payments Bank, for example, the savings interest rate was recently cut from 3.5% to 2.5% (from June 2025). By contrast, overnight mutual funds typically deliver 5–6% annualized returns, while still keeping money highly liquid (withdrawable the next day).

 

For consumers, this could be a game-changer—earning better returns without having to manually move funds between savings and mutual funds.

 

Example: How much can you really gain?

 

Suppose you keep ₹1 lakh as an emergency buffer in your Jio Payments Bank account.

 

Current scenario (2.5% p.a.)

Interest earned in one year = ₹2,500

 

If auto-invested in overnight funds (5.5% p.a.)

Returns in one year ≈ ₹5,500

 

That’s an extra ₹3,000 a year—on money that would have otherwise just sat idle. Scale this to larger balances, and the impact becomes even more meaningful.

 

Diversifying revenue streams is a focus for the payments bank, Sethia said, pointing out that services like Aadhaar-enabled payments, domestic money transfers, and B2B UPI will help in this aspect.

 

The fine print

 

While innovative, here are a few things customers must note:

 

Deposit cap: Payments banks like Jio cannot hold more than ₹2 lakh per customer. So the auto-invest option is best for short-term cash, not long-term wealth building.

 

Overnight fund risks: Though safer than most mutual funds, overnight funds are not “risk-free.” Returns can fluctuate slightly with interest rate movements.

 

Liquidity: Money is available next day, not instantly like a regular savings balance—important for emergencies.

 

JPB currently serves 25 lakh customers with a ₹358 crore deposit base. By offering Savings Pro, it’s positioning itself as more than a transaction bank, while tying into Jio Financial Services’ broader ecosystem—which already includes insurance (with Allianz), asset management (with BlackRock), and credit (home loans, LAP, corporate loans).

 

What should you do as a saver?

 

Use it for short-term cash: Emergency funds, monthly expenses buffer.

 

Don’t park large wealth here: Remember the ₹2 lakh limit; use fixed deposits, liquid funds, or other avenues for bigger amounts.

 

Track fees and taxation: Overnight funds qualify as debt mutual funds—taxed at your income slab rate for gains.

 

Check liquidity needs: If you need instant cash access 24x7, keep part of your money in savings and let only surplus flow into overnight funds