Regional Rural Bank mergers exempted from CCI Approval

The federal government has determined to exempt mergers of regional rural banks (RRBs) ordered by it from the requirement of the Competitors Fee of India’s (CCI’s) clearance, a senior official stated, in indicators that the following spherical of consolidation of such lenders could also be within the offing. The exemption, geared toward fast-tracking such mergers, could be granted for 5 years, the official stated. Related sections of the Competitors Act would not apply to those transactions throughout this era, he added.

An identical aid was granted by the company affairs ministry in 2017 for a five-year interval. The newest transfer comes at a time when the federal government has stepped up give attention to modernising the RRBs in a bid to spur credit score development in distant areas and increase financial actions. It had earlier favoured amalgamation of RRBs to allow them to attenuate their bills, shore up the capital base, optimise using know-how and lift their publicity.

From 196 in FY05, RRBs got here all the way down to 43 as of FY22, because of a collection of amalgamations.