For the third time since its punitive actions, the Reserve Bank on Monday increased withdrawal limits at the crippled cooperative PMC Bank to Rs 40,000 from the present Rs 25,000 per accountholder.
The move follows the weekend assurance by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to urge the Reserve Bank to look into the woes of the depositors of the cooperative bank with urgency, after irate depositors met her.
Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative Bank, which is among the top 10 urban cooperative banks, was placed under an RBI administrator on September 23 for six months due to massive under-reporting of dud loans. The regulator also capped deposit withdrawals first at Rs 1,000, which was subsequently increased to Rs 10,000 and Rs 25,000.
“The financial position of the bank has been substantially impaired due to fraud perpetrated on it by certain persons. As soon as the matter came to the notice of the Reserve Bank, action was taken in appointing an administrator and ensuring that the bank’s available resources are protected and not misused or diverted,” the RBI said.
In a press statement, the central bank also said the move to increase the withdrawal cap to Rs 40,000 has been taken “after reviewing the bank’s liquidity position and its ability to pay its depositors”.
