RBI slaps Rs 5-cr penalty on Gujarat's Mehsana Urban Co-operative Bank

The RBI on Tuesday said it has imposed a penalty of Rs 5 crore on The Mehsana Urban Co-operative Bank, Gujarat, for contravention of norms on 'loans and advances to directors, relatives and firms/concerns in which they are interested'.

The penalty was imposed through an order dated November 4, it said.

After statutory inspection of the bank regarding its financial position as on March 31, 2018, the central bank said the penalty was imposed "for contravention of the directions issued by RBI on 'Loans and Advances to Directors, Relatives and Firms/Concerns in which they are Interested', and non-compliance with the Master Directions on 'Know Your Customer (KYC)'".

The RBI, however, added that the penalty is based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the Mehsana-based bank with its customers.

After the inspection, a notice was issued to the co-operative bank.

After considering the bank's reply and oral submissions made during the personal hearing, the RBI said it came to conclusion that the charges regarding non-compliance with RBI directions were established which warranted imposition of monetary penalty.