Raising bank stakes gets easier for DIIs

The Reserve Bank of India proposed amendments to bank shareholding norms to ease investment by domestic institutional investors.

Portfolio manager client holdings will not be treated as indirect acquisitions if the client retains ownership and voting rights, and the manager provides only non-binding advice.

The draft introduces qualifying persons like mutual funds, insurance companies, and pension funds, allowing a one-time approval mechanism to increase holdings up to 10%.

Bank boards will focus on strategy and risk governance instead of routine administrative matters under revised governance norms.