Lok Sabha Question No. 1213 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-12-06
Subject: Customer-Centric Initiatives of RBI
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: Girish Bhalchandra Bapat, Chandra Sekhar Sahu, Pritam Gopinath Munde, Rahul Ramesh Shewale

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FINANCE

## DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1213

ANSWERED ON MONDAY, THE 06 th  DECEMBER, 2021

## Customer-Centric Initiatives of RBI

1213. SHRI GIRISH BHALCHANDRA BAPAT:

SHRI CHANDRA SEKHAR SAHU:

DR. PRITAM GOPINATHRAO MUNDE:

SHRI RAHUL RAMESH SHEWALE:

Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has launched customer centric initiatives of the Reserve Bank  of  India  (RBI)  viz.  Retail  Direct  Scheme  and  the  Reserve  Bank  -  Integrated Ombudsman Scheme in the recent past;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with its salient features;
- (c) whether the Government has conducted any survey to find out the extent to which these schemes will be able to expand the scope of investment and make access to capital markets easier, more secure for investors in the country;
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the extent to which Indian economy is likely to be benefited from these schemes?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE (SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY)

- (a) &  (b):  The  Reserve  Bank  of  India  (RBI)  has  launched  the  'RBI  Retail  Direct Scheme' and 'Integrated  Ombudsman  Scheme, 2021'. Details along with salient features of the both the schemes are annexed.
- (c) & (d): The Government  has not  conducted any survey.  Reserve  Bank  of  India  has designed  the  Scheme based on the feedback received from the market participants for simplifying the access to the G-Sec market by retail investors. The online portal developed for the Scheme is secure and user-friendly. The scheme expects to bring the government securities within easy reach of the general public by simplifying the investment process and widening the investor base.
- (e) RBI Retail Direct Scheme is expected to widen the investor base for the government securities which may result in  increased demand for  these securities leading to reduced cost  of  borrowing  for  the  Government.  Secondly,  the  increased  retail  participation  in Indian  government  securities  (G-sec)  will  improve  G-sec  market  liquidity  which  would facilitate  further  deepening  of the Indian G-sec market. A  well-developed G-sec market bodes  well for  the  development  of  other  segments  of  the Indian fixed income market.

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## (1) RBI Retail Direct Scheme:

- (i) The scheme is launched with an objective to provide the retail investors of the country a simple, safe, secure direct access to the Indian G-Sec market. The on-line portal makes it convenient  for  the  retail  investors  to  invest  in  Central  Government  securities,  State Government securities and Sovereign Gold Bonds through digital mode.
- (ii) Investors can place bids as per the non-competitive scheme for participation in primary auction of government securities, and as per the procedural guidelines for Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) issuance for investing in SGBs. Regarding accessing the secondary market, investors  can  buy  and  sell  G-Sec  directly  on  the  'Odd  Lot'  and  'Request  for  Quotes' segments of the NDS-OM platform.
- (iii) Payments for transactions (both primary and secondary market transactions can be done conveniently  using  saving  bank  account  through  internet  banking  or  Unified  Payments Interface (UPI).
- (iv) The scheme provides the following facilities to the retail investors:
- (a) Opening a securities account (Retail Direct Gilt Account) with RBI free of cost,
- (b) Buying G-Sec in the primary auctions conducted by RBI;
- (c) Buying and selling G-Sec in the secondary market.
- (v) The details of the 'RBI Retail Direct Scheme' are available on RBI portal (https://rbiretaildirect.org.in).

## (2) Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021:

- (i) The scheme was launched by integrating  the  existing  three  Ombudsman  schemes  of RBI.  The  Scheme  will  provide  cost-  free  redressal  of  customer  complaints  involving deficiency  in  services  rendered  by  entities  regulated  by  RBI,  if  not  resolved  to  the satisfaction of  the  customers  or  not  replied  within  a  period  of  30 days  by  the  regulated entity. The Scheme also includes under  its  ambit  Non-Scheduled  Primary  Co-operative Banks with a  deposit  size  of ` 50 crore and above.
- (ii) It  will  no  longer  be  necessary  for  a  complainant  to  identify  under  which scheme he/she should file complaint with the Ombudsman. The Scheme has done away with the jurisdiction of each ombudsman office. A Centralised Receipt and Processing Centre has been set up at RBI, Chandigarh for  receipt  and  initial  processing  of  physical  and  email complaints in any language.
- (iii) The  responsibility of  representing  the Regulated  Entity  and  furnishing  information  in respect of complaints filed by customers against the Regulated Entity would be that of the Principal  Nodal  Officer  in  the  rank  of  a  General  Manager  in  a  Public  Sector  Bank  or equivalent. The  Regulated  Entity  will  not  have  the  right  to  appeal  in  cases  where an Award  is  issued  by  the  ombudsman  against  it  for  not  furnishing  satisfactory and timely information/documents
- (iv) The details of the  Scheme  are  available  on  the  RBI  website  (https://cms.rbi.org.in).

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## Annexure