Mumbai, March 20 The Reserve Bank announced on Friday that it has imposed a fine of ₹31.8 lakh on Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation for non-compliance with certain directions related to inactive accounts and unclaimed deposits.
In a statement, the Reserve Bank said that a statutory inspection was conducted for supervisory evaluation of the bank, with reference to its financial position as of March 31, 2025.
Based on the supervisory findings of non-compliance with the provisions of RBI directions and related correspondence, a notice was issued to the bank.
After considering the bank's response to the notice, additional submissions, and oral arguments made during the personal hearing, the RBI said that the charges against the bank were substantiated, warranting the imposition of a monetary penalty.
"The bank did not maintain a searchable database of unclaimed deposits on its website and did not generate and assign an Unclaimed Deposits Reference Number (UDRN) to certain unclaimed deposits transferred to the 'Depositor Education and Awareness' (DEA) Fund," it added.
However, the central bank added that the penalty is based on deficiencies in statutory and regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation with its customers.
Furthermore, the imposition of a monetary penalty is without prejudice to any other action that may be initiated by the RBI against the bank, the statement added.