RBI lifts curbs on HDFC Bank, allows its digital launch

MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has lifted the ban on HDFC Bank launching new initiatives in

digital banking

that was imposed in December 2020 after a spate of outages in the bank’s internet and mobile banking.

“We would like to inform one and all that RBI has lifted the restriction on the business generating activities planned under the bank’s Digital 2.0 programme,” HDFC Bank said in a statement.

The ban was imposed as a part of the central bank’s disciplinary action, besides which, HDFC was also barred from issuing new credit cards. The ban on new card issuances was lifted in August 2021. One of the requirements for lifting the ban was that the bank does an IT audit certifying the adequacy of the internal controls.

Although HDFC Bank had not been given any time frame to comply with RBI requirements, many analysts had assumed that the bank would be able to get itself certified in six months. While the ban on card issuances was lifted in eight months, the ban on digital initiatives has been in place for over 14 months.