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India to Form High-Level Banking Panel as PFC Board Backs REC Merger

The finance minister cast the move as preparation for Viksit Bharat financing rather than a directive for bank mergers.

Overview

  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government will constitute the High-Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat at the earliest.
  • The panel is tasked with reviewing the banking sector and recommending reforms to build large, globally competitive lenders capable of meeting development funding needs.
  • Budget documents framed the review around safeguarding financial stability, inclusion and consumer protection alongside scaling up capacity.
  • In a parallel consolidation step, the PFC board last week gave in-principle approval to merge REC Limited into Power Finance Corporation.
  • REC has been a PFC subsidiary since a 2019 deal in which PFC acquired a 52.63% stake for about Rs 14,500 crore, and both lenders finance power sector projects.