Page 48 - Finance Ministry

Treat customer as God: MoS Finance calls for boost in banking services

Calling for further improvement in banking services, Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat K Karad urged banks to treat their customers as God. Banks should focus on improving their customer service and work towards reducing pain points, Karad said while addressing a Customer Meet programme organised by Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) earlier this week. At the same time, he asked customers to be responsive and prompt in repayment of loans so that banks are financially healthy. With regard to Kisan Credit Card (KCC), he urged banks, including BoM for expanding the reach of KCC scheme to more farmers and ensure time-bound saturation. The banking industry needs to serve small and marginal farmers, youth and women agripreneurs and act as catalyst for growth, he said. India has now become the fifth largest economy in the world and is aiming to be a USD 5 trillion economy under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said. Addressing the gathering, BoM Managing Director A S Rajeev s

Finance, railways, defence ministries among top 5 litigants in government

Union ministries of finance, railways, defence, labour and employment and home are the "top five litigants" amongst the government, Lok Sabha was informed on Friday. In a written reply, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said seeking to reduce litigation, ministries and departments such as the railways and the Department of Revenue, involved in a high number of litigations, have been taking several measures for reducing the number of court cases. Citing data available on the Legal Information Management and Briefing System (LIMBS) portal, he said the finance ministry has 1.73 lakh pending cases, including 9,062 in the Supreme Court. The railways ministry has 1.08 lakh pending cases, including 554 in the top court, while the defence ministry has over 85,000 pending cases, which include 1,235 in the apex court. The labour and employment ministry is party to over 78,000 pending cases, including 320 in the top court. The home ministry has over 23,000 pending cases in various courts and tribunal

Crypto under PMLA: CoinDCX registers itself as reporting entity with FIU

As per the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, a reporting entity is required to conduct KYC verification of the customers and maintain their records

Panel working on classification of millet products to determine GST rates

The panel will likely propose the classification at the next GST Council meeting, which is expected to be held at the end of May or in June

Top headlines: FPIs seek six more mths from FinMin, 1st India chip fab soon

Business Standard brings you the top headlines at this hour

MoS IT Chandrasekhar to take up SVB-liked startups' woes with FinMin

The IT ministry will take up woes of Indian startups impacted by the Silicon Valley Bank collapse with the finance ministry to help them navigate through the crisis and address the immediate liquidity crunch they are facing, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Tuesday. The Minister of State for Electronics and IT during interactions with startups asked them to engage with the Indian banking system, which has been very robust and assured them of resolving teething issues they may face. Though startups and venture capitalists said that the US government authorities have assured of returning full money to the depositors, there is no clarity on the timelines, which will lead to a liquidity crunch in the firms that have been impacted by the SVB collapse, according to the minister. "I am going to put together a suggestion list and give it to the honourable finance minister on your behalf, and work closely with the government of India as a whole," Chandrasekhar said. Most of the .

FinMin pushes PSBs to enhance procurement via GeM to Rs 10,000 cr in FY24

GeM Sahay to provide short-term loans to all sellers

CAG to chair G20 SAI on March 13-15 in Guwahati, 'Responsible AI' in focus

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is the Chair of the Supreme Audit Institutions-20 (SAI20) Engagement Group under India's G20 Presidency

Finance Ministry tightens definition of 'beneficial owners' under PMLA

The Finance Ministry has tightened the definition of beneficial owners under the anti-money laundering law, mandating reporting entities like banks and crypto platforms to collect information from their clients. As per the amendments to the Prevention of Money Laundering Rules, any individual or group holding 10 per cent ownership in the client of a 'reporting entity' will now be considered a beneficial owner as against the ownership threshold of 25 per cent applicable earlier. The amended rules were notified on March 7 by the Finance Ministry. Under the anti-money laundering law, 'reporting entities' are banks and financial institutions, firms engaged in real estate and jewellery sectors. They also include intermediaries in casinos and crypto or virtual digital assets. So far, these entities were required to maintain KYC details or records of documents evidencing the identity of their clients as well as account files and business correspondence relating to clients. They are requir

India imposes money laundering provisions on cryptocurrency sector

The Finance Ministry said in a notice on Tuesday that anti-money laundering legislation has been applied to crypto trading, safekeeping and related financial services

FinMin holds webinar on services for better implementation of Budget

As part of a post-Budget Webinar, the Finance Ministry on Tuesday hosted virtual discussions on the six chosen subjects following an address by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The webinar had six breakout sessions on various themes, including creating growth opportunities in GIFT International Financial Services Centre, facilitating seamless credit flow for MSMEs and enhancing customer ease for account opening and digital payments. "As part of post-Budget Webinar on 'Enhancing Efficiency of Financial Services for Creating growth opportunities', a breakout session on "Facilitating Seamless Credit Flow" to #MSMEs was held via virtual mode today," the Finance Ministry said in a tweet. The webinar was the 10th in the series of 12 post-Budget webinars being held to seek ideas and suggestions for effective implementation of the initiatives announced in the Union Budget 2023-24. "As part of post-Budget Webinar on 'Enhancing Efficiency of Financial Services for Creating growth opportunities'

DFS work on draft insurance law complete, sent to Cabinet for approval

The amendments aim to enhance the security of policyholders, promote their interests, and improve returns

FY23 fiscal deficit: FinMin starts daily monitoring of receipts, expenses

The finance ministry has started daily monitoring of the revenue receipts, including tax collections, as well as expenditure beginning March 1, with an aim to keep fiscal deficit in check during the current fiscal. Although the government is expected to meet the revised tax revenue estimates, meeting the Rs 50,000 crore target from disinvestment receipts could be a challenge. According to officials, the daily monitoring of tax and non-tax revenue collections will help the government in taking timely corrective actions, wherever needed. "In order to keep a close track of receipts, expenditure and involving fiscal position of the central government in the month of March, 2023, it is necessary to have updated information on a day-to-day basis," the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) under the finance ministry said in an office memorandum dated March 1. The Ministry has also asked the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) to repor

Taking several steps to create global brand for Indian tea: Comm Min

India has taken several steps to boost tea output, create a niche brand for the Indian tea and ensure the welfare of families associated with this industry, the commerce ministry said on Thursday. India is the second largest tea producer and the largest black tea producer and is self-sufficient in meeting domestic requirements and export obligations. It said the Indian tea is exported to various destinations and is the fourth largest tea exporter besides catering to a large number of domestic consumers. The industry is employing 1.16 million workers directly and an equal number are associated with it indirectly. "Government through the Tea Board had helped in the formation of 352 Self Help Groups , 440 Farmer Producer Organisations and 17 Farmer Producer Companies. Assistance has been provided towards procurement of pruning machines and mechanical harvesters," it said. Other measures include setting up of mini tea factories to encourage entrepreneurs; development of mobile app 'Ch

First time in many years, fixed deposit rates turn positive at 8%

As banks' chase for customers to collect cheap deposits is not fructifying, they are forced to offer inflation-beating real interest rates on fixed deposits now, and state-run banks led by Punjab & Sind Bank top the chart offering a cool 8-8.50 per cent per annum. Banks are forced to offer inflation-beating deposit rates for a tenor ranging from 200 to 800 days as credit growth has been far outpacing deposit mobilization throughout this fiscal, leading to a funding crunch. Even at the lowest 7 per cent, fixed deposit pricing is positive for customers because even after a surprise spurt in retail inflation for January at 6.52 per cent, the real rates are in the green. Inflation has been over 6 per cent for 10 months of 2022 forcing the Reserve Bank to increase rates by 250 bps to 6.50 per cent through six consecutive hikes beginning May 2022. For the fortnight to January 13, 2023, credit growth rose 16.5 per cent annualised as against 10.6 per cent growth in deposits. In fact, for .

FM highlights rising debt vulnerabilities in developing countries at G20

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday highlighted rising debt vulnerabilities in many developing countries and sought views from G20 member nations on 'multilateral coordination' for managing the burden. Speaking at inaugural session of the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors (FMCBG) meeting, Sitharaman also sought views on how multilateral development banks, like the IMF and World Bank, can be strengthened to address shared global challenges of the 21st century, while maintaining a focus on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and poverty eradication. The discussions of the first session of G20 FMCBG meeting focused on issues relating to international financial architecture, sustainable finance and infrastructure. "FM highlighted the rising #DebtVulnerbilities in many vulnerable countries and sought views of the #G20 members on #MultilateralCoordination stating that managing global debt vulnerabilities would be crucial for the world economy," the finance ...

El Nino risk for inflation, farm output in India: Finance ministry

IMD predicts above-normal temperatures this year

G20 meetings: FM Sitharaman meets Japanese counterpart Shunichi Suzuki

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday met her Japanese counterpart Shunichi Suzuki, ahead of the first G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting

Measures announced in Budget to promote jobs, spur economic growth: FinMin

The measures like increased capex, boosting the green economy and initiatives for strengthening financial markets announced in the Budget 2023-24 are expected to promote job creation and spur economic growth, the finance ministry said on Thursday. In its Monthly Economic Review, the ministry said during the December 2022 quarter, various High-Frequency Indicators (HFIs) pointed towards a slowdown in general, as monetary tightening appeared to have started weakening global demand. "This may continue in 2023 as various agencies have forecasted a decline in global growth. Apart from the lagged impact of monetary tightening, the uncertainties emanating from the lingering pandemic and relentless conflict in Europe may further dampen global growth," it noted. Even as global output is expected to slow, the IMF and World Bank project India to be the fastest-growing major economy in 2023. "As in 2022-23, India faces the coming financial year with confidence imparted by underlying and overal

RoC to check GoMechanic's books amid allegations of irregularities: Report

According to the Companies Act, Section 264 (4), the RoC has the authority to conduct an inquiry into the affairs of a company in line with directions from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA)