Minimum Deposits :Banking on exclusion and Not inclusion.

 Minimum Deposits: Banking on exclusion, Not inclusion

Dear Sir,

This refers to “RBI clears the air on Minimum Deposits” (ET, 12/8/25). The RBI Governor has rightly clarified that minimum deposit thresholds are set by banks, not the regulator.

 However, not withstanding this , the fact remans that in a country where a majority of the population  depend on subsidies and face high unemployment, inflation, and soaring living costs, such thresholds risk excluding millions from the formal banking system.Banks are not just financial institutions—they are a bridge between citizens and economic growth. Raising minimum balance requirements, especially by a major private sector bank with very wide  reach, undermines the progress made towards financial inclusion and risks reviving “class banking.”

The prevailing trend across the sector is to remove these barriers, not raise them. ICICI Bank’s move deserves urgent reconsideration—in its own interest, and in the broader interest of equity, inclusion, and economic well-being.

T.V.Gopalakrishnan

( Copy of the Letter sent to ET but not found published.)