3 months ago
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The authorities volition soon represent a High-Level Committee connected Banking for Viksit Bharat to gully up a blueprint to make mega-lenders susceptible of gathering the financing needs of a developed India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.
Credible and creditable: On Union Budget 2026-27
"We privation the committee to archer america what benignant of things we request to bash truthful that banking is made disposable for backing Viksit Bharat," she told PTI videos successful an interview.
Asked if it would suggest a merger of nationalist assemblage banks, Ms. Sitharaman said 1 should not constrictive it down similar that.
"It is for India's banking assemblage to beryllium made large enough, large capable successful the sense, made oregon primed to instrumentality attraction of Viksit Bharat funding. You person to scope Viksit Bharat destination...it (Viksit Bharat) needs money, it needs financing, it needs credit, it needs banking installation to scope the communal man." When asked astir the timeframe for enactment of the committee, she said, "We volition bash it astatine the earliest".
"I suggest mounting up a ‘High Level Committee connected Banking for Viksit Bharat’ to comprehensively reappraisal the assemblage and align it with India's adjacent signifier of growth, portion safeguarding fiscal stability, inclusion and user protection," she had said successful the Budget code connected February 1, 2026.
To execute standard and amended ratio successful the nationalist assemblage NBFCs, arsenic a archetypal step, the Budget besides projected to restructure the Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Rural Electrification Corporation (REC).
"A batch of enactment has happened successful the ministry concerned. They person travel up with this expectation. Let's spot however they play it out," she said, erstwhile asked if a merger is connected the cards.
REC is simply a subsidiary of State-owned powerfulness assemblage lender PFC. Both entities play a cardinal relation successful backing powerfulness generation, transmission and organisation projects.
In March 2019, PFC completed the acquisition of a bulk involvement successful REC Ltd by transferring ₹14,500 crore to the government.
PFC acquired 103.94 crore shares, constituting 52.63% stake, held by the authorities successful REC, on with the absorption control. The acquisition terms was worked retired to ₹139.50 per share. This involvement acquisition came pursuing the in-principle support from the Cabinet Committee connected Economic Affairs.
Both PFC and REC are Navratna cardinal nationalist assemblage enterprises, and this acquisition was a measurement toward consolidating companies operating successful the aforesaid space.
Last week, the PFC committee gave in-principle support for the merger of the non-banking concern institution REC Limited with itself.
The committee support for the merger of PFC and REC came aft an announcement made successful this respect successful the Budget connected Sunday (February 1, 2026).
