Banks rush to hike deposit rates, raise funds amid firm loan growth

Major private lenders such as HDFC Bank, ICICI, Axis revise rates; deposit rates now catching up with RBI rate hikes

Faced with a steep gap between growth in credit and that in deposits, banks have made a beeline to raise deposit rates and raise funds. Major private lenders HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank have all announced revised rates on Wednesday.

IDFC First Bank, Equitas Small Finance Bank and AU Small Finance Bank have also announced revised deposit rates over the past few days, with analysts now saying that bank deposit rates were finally moving in line with the Reserve Bank of India’s policy rate hikes.

HDFC Bank, India’s largest private bank, has hiked rates by