5 Day Banking a reality in India soon
The Indian Bank Association (IBA) in December last year (2023) put ahead request to the Department of Financial Supervision, Ministry of Finance for its approval and declaration for five-day banking and declaring all Saturdays as public holidays. Given the working conditions and rising stress levels, along with increased automation and the availability of banking services 24×7.
Here is everything you need to know about the five-day banking in India.
What is five day banking and how will it work?
The concept of five-day banking refers to the operational schedule of banks where they remain open for business for only five days a week, which is from Monday to Friday.
As IBA represents diverse grouping of banks in India, from public and private sector banks to foreign banks, cooperative banks, regional rural banks, and all Indian financial institutions, the proposal reflects a long-standing demand from public banks to align India’s banking sector with global standards of work-life balance.
When are the banks in India open?
Traditionally, banks in India used to operate on a six-day workweek. However, owing to the reform introduced in 2015 under the 10th Bipartite Settlement, signed with the RBI for all banks in India, allowed Indian banks to provide two extra holidays on two Saturdays in the month.
Has the 5-day banking started in India?
While the proposal has been submitted as confirmed by the Minister of State for Finance, Bhagwat Karad, the proposal is currently awaiting approval from the Ministry of Finance, after which it will be submitted to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for further consideration. There has been no announcement of it being accepted or will be considered in the near future.
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