Banking Awareness For SBI PO

Dear readers, here we are providing some important Banking news which will be imporntant for upcoming
SBI Exam.
1. Main Points of RBI monetary policy review:
As on 1 April 2014, RBI (Reserve Bank of India) in its first bimonthly monetary policy statement kept the
key policy rate (repo) unchanged.
Current RBI Policy & Reserve Rates:
1. Repo Rate 8%
(Unchanged)
2. Reverse Repo 7%
(Unchanged)
3. CRR 4%
(Unchanged)
4. SLR 23%
(Unchanged)
5. MSF 9%
(Unchanged)
6. Bank Rate 9%
(Unchanged)

Note: i. Economic growth for 2014-15 expected at 5.5%.

ii. CAD expected to come down to 2% of GDP in 2014-15.
iii. Retail inflation expected to be under 6% in 2014.
iv. RBI asks banks not to charge penalty for failure to maintain minimum balance in inoperative account.
v. It was first bi-monthly monetary policy review, next one scheduled for June 3.
2.

World Bank has projected an economic growth rate of 5.7% in 2014-15 for India:
World Bank projected an acceleration of growth (factor costs) in FY 2014 to 4.8%, further increase to
5.7% in FY 2015

3. Panel headed by Anand SInha for benchmark floating interest rate

RBI panel headed by RBI Deputy Governor Anand Sinha has recommended bringing a benchmark
floating interest rate, especially for home loans. Panel also suggested Indian Banks Base Rate (IBBR).
4. SBI launches 3 Digital banking facilities for its customers
i. Tab Banking for Saving A/C - Opening Savings a/c at Customers door step using tablet PC provided to the
Banks Sales Staff (who visit the Customers home).
ii. TAB Banking for Home Loan - In-principle approval for the home loan at customers door step using tablet
PC provided to the Banks Home Loan Sales Team which will capture on the tablet KYC details and
details.
iii. e-KYC - Generates e-KYC (Know Your Customer) identity document. Fingerprints of the customer will
be captured and sent to UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) for authentication of identity and
address proof. On successful authentication from UIDAI, the e-KYC service will act in response to display
demographic details like [Name, year/date of birth, Gender, Address, Phone, email (if available)] and
photograph.
Note: These facilities will offer ease and time saving to the customer for opening accounts with SBI bank.
5. RBI grants In-Principle banking licenses to IDFC and Bandhan
RBI has granted in-principle banking licences to Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC)
and microfinance lender Bandhan Financial Services Ltd.

The declaration was made by RBI after nod from the Election Commission. These are the first licences to
be awarded by RBI since 2003-04.
RBI constituted Bimal Jalan panel scrutinized the applications for new bank licences.
Note: The in-principle approval by RBI is valid for ONLY 18 months.
During this 18 month-period IDFC and Bandhan Financial Services Ltd will have to meet all RBI rules and
guidelines in order to secure a permanent licence to start banking activities.
6. RBI extends deadline on capital norms under Basel III
RBI extended deadline for banks to implement Basel III capital norms up to March 31, 2019, instead of
March 31, 2018. With the extension, the RBI has also revised deadline for for meeting Minimum Common
Equity Tier 1 and Capital conservation buffer (CCB).
Note: i. Basel III is a comprehensive set of reform measures, developed by the Basel Committee on
Banking Supervision, to strengthen the regulation, supervision and risk management of the banking
sector.
ii. In terms of Basel III capital regulations issued by the RBI, the Capital Conservation Buffer (CCB) will be
implemented from March-end 2016 (against March-end 2015 earlier). Consequently, the Regulations will
be fully implemented as on March-end 2019 (against March-end 2018 earlier).
iii. Basel series of norms refer to a broad supervisory standards formulated by
Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) to ensure that financial institutions have enough capital
on account to meet obligations and absorb unexpected losses.
7. Kotak Mahindra Bank links current accounts to Twitter
The private lender bank, Kotak Mahindra launched a new current account product that will enable the
account holders to undertake 21 services viz. cheque book requisitioning, checking last few transactions,
etc, and using their Twitter accounts.
Note: i. For the activity of listed service, the bank customers have to use the dedicated hashtags (#).
ii. The account christened Jifi, also involves a host of loyalty-based reward points accrued from
merchant transactions carried out using the account, referrals made and sharing and commenting of
tweets/updates.
Note: The bank has integrated all their systems with their core bankingsoftware and can seamlessly
throw up the required result into the account holders Twitter handle as a direct message.
8. Bank of India (BoI) launched Instant Money Transfer (IMT) scheme
The Bank of India (BoI) launched an Instant Money Transfer (IMT) scheme and became the first staterun lender to allow withdrawal of funds to individuals from its ATMs without an account in the bank. In
other words, the IMT scheme allows customers to withdraw cash without using either debt card or
credit card at BoIs IMT-enabled ATMs.
Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of India is V. R. Iyer.
9. RBI hiked trade related remittance limit from Rs.2 lakh to Rs.5 lakh per transaction
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) hiked the trade related remittance limit from Rs.2 lakh to Rs.5 lakh
per transaction with immediate effect and also increased the number of transaction handled by
exchange houses.
The hike in per transaction is on the review of the permitted transactions under the Rupee Drawing
Arrangements (RDAs).These changes have been included in the Memorandum of Instructions for
Opening and Maintenance of Rupee/ Foreign Currency Vostro Accounts of Non-resident Exchange
Houses.
Note: Vostro account (also known as a loro account) is one in which the domestic bank acts as
custodian or manages the account of a foreign counterpart.

10. Qatar based Doha Bank announced its First branch in Mumbai
Doha Bank announced that it will be opening its first branch at Nariman Point in Mumbai in India. The
branch in Mumbai will be opened as a full-fledged bank in May 2014.
Note: Doha Bank is the largest private commercial bank in the state of Qatar. It was incorporated in 1978
and commenced its domestic and international banking services in Doha, Qatar in 1979.
11. Ms Lakshmi Swaminathan : Became first Indian President of Administrative Tribunal of the ADB
Ms. Lakshmi Swaminathan became the first Indian to become president of Administrative Tribunal of
the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for three years. Ms. Swaminathan is the seventh president of the
Tribunal. At present, she is a member of the Panel of Arbitrators of several public sector undertakings and
NSE.

12. BSE launched Institutional Trading Platform (ITP) on SME

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) launched an Institutional Trading Platform (ITP) to helpSmall and
Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and start-up companies to list on the bourses without an Initial Public Offer
(IPO). BSE Ltd set up the BSE SME Platform as per the rules and regulations laid down by SEBI.

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First bank established in India: Bank of Hindustan in 1770

Second bank: General Bank of India, 1786
Oldest bank in India originated in the Bank of Calcutta in June 1806 which was still in existence State
Bank of India
State Bank of India merged with three banks namely Bank of Bengal, Bank of Bombay and Bank of
Madras in 1921 to form the Imperial bank of India which was converted as State Bank of India
First Indian bank got ISO: Canara Bank
First India bank started solely with Indian capital investment is PNB (Punjab National Bank)
Founder of Punjab National Bank is Lala Lajpat Rai
Reserve bank of India (RBI) was instituted in 1935
First governor of RBI: Mr.Osborne Smith
First Indian Governor of RBI: Mr. C D Deshmukh
First bank to introduce savings account in India: Presidency Bank in 1833
First bank to introduce cheque system in India: Bengal Bank in 1833

View SBI PO English Gramer Questions Model Paper PDF

First bank to introduce internet banking: ICICI bank
First bank to introduce mutual fund: State Bank of India
First bank to introduce credit card in India: Central Bank of India
Which cards are known as plastic money Credit Cards.
Open market operations are carried out by RBI
Capital market regulator is SEBI
Largest Commercial bank in India State Bank of India
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) is known as World Bank
Indias First Financial Archive has been set up at Kolkata

CRR, SLR, Repo Rate, Reverse Repo rate are decide by RBI

View SBI PO Study Material and Paper pattern with Marks

The bank which has launched Mobile Bank Accounts in association with Vodafones m paisa HDFC
Bank
Minimum money transfer limit through RTGS: 2 Lakhs
Maximum money transfer limit through RTGS: No Limit
Minimum & Maximum money transfer limit through NEFT: No Limit
NABARD was established in July, 1982
Largest Public sector bank in India SBI
Largest Private sector bank in India ICICI Bank
Largest Foreign bank in India Standard Chartered Bank
First Indian bank to open branch outside India i.e. London in 1946: Bank of India
First RRB named Prathama Grameen Bank was started by: Syndicate Bank

View SBI PO Exam Latest Current Affiars

First Bank to introduce ATM in India: HSBC in1987, Mumbai
Bank of Baroda has the maximum number of overseas branches
SBI holds the second position with maximum number of overseas branches
Premium credit cards exclusively for women launched recently by HDFC bank
Private Sector Bank that recently launched a product of Personal loan called SWIFT HDFC
The bank which approved loan of $500mn to help India improve Rail services Asian Development
Bank
FDI limit for new banks 49%
FDI limit for private banks: 74%

The performance ratings of banks operating in India would be put on the public domain
from next year. Which entity is rating bank services and would share this information in
public domain? Banking Codes Standards Board of India BCSBI (BCSBI was set
up as an independent and autonomous body in 2007 by the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) to ensure that the common consumer of financial services from the banking
industry gets what he/she has been promised. BCSBI is rating banks on customer
services on five parameters information dissemination, transparency, customercentricity, grievance redressal system and customer feedback. Of the 48 banks rated for
customer service, only five received high ratings; 25 were rated above average; 17
average; and one below average. The ratings have been shared with the banks. The
ratings were given based on a survey conducted by BCSBI across 69 cities, involving
3,000 branches and 6,000 customers)

2) State Bank of India (SBI) on 1 July 2014 launched six digital branches across the
nation to serve tech-savvy customers. One of such branches in Delhi was inaugurated
on this day by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Other 5 such branches are located in
Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Ahmedabad. What is the name given to this new

range of branches which will have full digital banking capabilities?

sbiINTOUCH (These sbiINTOUCH branches will include instant account opening with
personalised debit cards, instant loan approvals for education, car and home and
remote expert advisors available via video links. The new branches will be located in
malls and will be primarily aimed at youth, who look for digital banking)

3) Who was re-appointed as the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on
3 July 2014 by the Union Govt.? Harun Rashid Khan (The appointment has been
made for two years with effect from 4 July 2014 or until further orders, whichever is
earlier. Khan was appointed deputy governor in July 2011 for a three-year term, which
was set to expire on 3 July. As deputy governor, Khan looks after the foreign exchange
department and internal debt management, among others. The other two RBI deputy
governors are Urjit Patel and the recently appointed R. Gandhi. The government is yet
to appoint a deputy governor to replace KC Chakrabarty, who retired on 25 April 2014)

4) Who headed the committee on Tendulkar Committee methodology for estimating

poverty, the report of which was submitted to Planning Commission on 1 July 2014?
C. Rangarajan (C. Rangarajan, the former chief of Prime Ministers Economic Advisory
Council (PMEAC), submitted the report to planning minister Rao Inderjit Singh. The
Planning Commission in May 2012 had constituted the expert group under the then
PMEAC chairman C Rangarajan to review the Tendulkar Committee methodology for
estimating poverty, following an uproar over the number of poor in the country. The
Planning Commissions estimates had drawn flak in September, 2011 when in an
affidavit to the Supreme Court it was stated that households with per capita
consumption of more than Rs. 32 in urban areas and Rs. 26 in rural will not be treated
as poor)

5) Which public sector financial entity engaged in commercial and development banking
operations is celebrating its 50th anniversary (Golden Jubilee) during July 2014?
Industrial Development Bank of India IDBI (IDBI was established in 1964 under an
Act of Parliament as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). In
1976, the ownership of IDBI was transferred to the Government of India and it was
made the principal financial institution for coordinating the activities of institutions
engaged in financing, promoting and developing industry in India. IDBI provided
financial assistance, both in rupee and foreign currencies, for green-field projects as
also for expansion, modernisation and diversification purposes. During September 2004
the RBI incorporated IDBI as a scheduled bank under the RBI Act, 1934.
Consequently, IDBI, formally entered the portals of banking business as IDBI Ltd. from
1 October 2004. The commercial banking arm, IDBI BANK, was merged into IDBI in
2005)

6) During June 2014 it was reported in some newspapers that the Finance Ministry is
considering doubling the exemption limit for investments by individuals in financial
instruments to Rs 2 lakh in the forthcoming Annual Budget. This is being sought so as
to give a major boost to household savings. What was the savings rate of India during
2012-13, a figure declining continuously since 2007-08? 30% of GDP (The savings
rate of the country stood at 38% of countrys GDP during 2008. There have been
demands from bankers and insurers to hike the tax exemption limit from Rs 1 lakh per
annum to encourage household savings. The Direct Taxes Code (DTC) too had
recommended that the combined ceiling for investments and expenditures be raised to
Rs 1.5 lakh per annum)

7) Which body, that during June 2014 submitted its report to the Prime Minister, has
recommended that the Planning Commission should be replaced by a reforms and
solution body as it exceeds the scope of its authority by acting as a control commission?
Independent Evaluation Office IEO (The IEO, which was set up by the
government in November 2010, from February this year began independently assessing
the effectiveness of government programmes and institutional policies. It submitted the
assessment report on Planning Commission to Prime Minister during June 2014. IEO in
its report stated that since the Planning Commission has defied attempts to reform it to
bring it in line with the needs of a modern economy and the trend of empowering the
States, it is proposed that the Planning Commission be replaced)

8) Which PSU general insurance company during June 2014 introduced insurance on
wheels concept for faster renewal of policies? National Insurance Company
Ltd. (Under the scheme, a vehicle will be parked at appropriate locations in a city.
People can renew their policies from there instead of going to the company office.
Currently, the service has been introduced in 15-odd cities of the country)

9) The delisting process of which pharma major came under market regulator SEBIs
lens for violation of its regulations on fraudulent and unfair trade practices and SEBI
issued an order on 24 June 2014? AstraZeneca (SEBI said that it started
investigating the matter after coming across reports that the offer-for-sale (OFS) done
by Astra Zenecas promoters in May 2013 was a deliberate attempt to subsequently get
the share delisted at ease. On further examination, SEBI found that Astra Zenecas two
earlier attempts at delisting (2004 and 2010) had been unsuccessful. In its order SEBI
directed that the promoters of AstraZeneca shall finally purchase shares from public
shareholders in the delisting offer only after seeking approval of the BSE and the NSE)

10) Global e-commerce giant Amazon during May 2014 tied up with N.R. Narayana
Murthy, the co-founder of IT services firm Infosys by forming an e-commerce joint
venture with his private investment firm. What is the name of this investment firm of
Narayana Murthy? Catamaran Ventures (Murthys private investment firm

Catamaran Ventures, a Rs. 600-crore fund launched in 2010, has formed a joint venture
with Amazons Asia unit to create a new entity. This new entity will help small and
medium businesses in India. Catamaran Ventures is based in Bangalore)
1) Which was the venue of the opening ceremony of 20 th Commonwealth Games held at
Glasgow (Scotland)? Celtic Park (The opening ceremony was held on on 23 July
2014)
..
2) Which was the venue of the closing ceremony of 20 th Commonwealth Games held on
3 August 2014? Hampden Park
..
3) What was the motto of these Games? People, Place, Passion
..
4) What was the name of the official mascot of 20th Commonwealth Games? Clyde
..
5) Clyde, the mascot of 20th Commonwealth Games, represented what? The Clyde
River, that flows through Glasgow
..
6) With the successful completion of 20th Commonwealth Games, Scotland has now
hosted these Games for how many times? Three (Scotland hosted its first
Commonwealth Games in 1970 in Edinburgh and then in 1986 also in Edinburgh)
..
7) Which city would host the next Commonwealth Games to be held in 2018? Gold
Coast City, Australia (The 21st Commonwealth Games would be held at Gold Coast
City during April 2018)
..
8) Which country topped the medals tally in the 20th Commonwealth Games? England
..
9) Which are the top 10 countries in the medals tally of 20 th Commonwealth Games?
England, Australia, Canada, Scotland, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Nigeria,
Kenya and Jamaica
..
10) How many countries took part in the Games? Seventy One (71)
..
11) How many countries won medals in the 20th Commonwealth Games? 37

..
12) Which two athletes won 6 gold medals each at the 20 th Commonwealth Games?
P. Bezzoubenko of Canada (in Rhythmic Gymnastics) and E. McKon of Australia (in
Swimming)
..
13) Who were the fastest athletes of 20th Commonwealth Games? Kemar BaileyCole (Jamaica) was the fastest male athlete and Blessing Okagbare (Nigeria) was
the fastest woman athlete of the Games
..
14) Who was the only Gold medal winner in these games to be caught for doping
charges? Chika Amalaha (The women weightlifter of Nigeria who won gold in
womens 53 kg weightlifting event. Her gold medal was consequentially taken back)
..
15) Which tiny Pacific island nation won its first-ever medal in Commonwealth Games
in form of a Gold Medal? Kiribati (David Katoatau won Gold medal for his country
Kiribati in 105 Kg mens weightlifting event)
..
16) Which country did not participated in the 20th Commonwealth Games as it withdrew
its membership of Commonwealth in 2013? Gambia (Gambia withdrew as the
member of Commonwealth countries on 7 October 2013 and hence did not send its
contingent to these games)
..
17) What was Indias rank in 20th Commonwealth Games? Fifth
..
18) India won many medals overall in 20th Commonwealth Games? 64
..
19) India won how many gold medals in 20th Commonwealth Games? 15 (It won 30
silver medals and 19 bronze medals to take its overall tally to 64)
..
20) India won largest number of gold medals in which sports at the 20 thCommonwealth
Games? Wrestling (It won 5 gold medals in wrestling through Sushil Kumar,
Yogeshwar Dutt, Babita Kumari, Amit Kumar and Vinesh Phogat)
..
21) India won how many gold medals in Shooting at the 20th Commonwealth Games?
Four (Four gold medal winners for India in Shooting are Abhinav Bindra, Apurvi
Chandela, Jitu Rai and Rahi Sarnobat)

..
22) India won how many gold medals in Weightlifting at the 20 th Commonwealth
Games? Three (Indias three gold winners in weightlifting are Satish Sivalingam, K
Sanjita Chanu and Sukhen Dey)
..
23) Who is Indias only gold medal winner in athletics events at the 20thCommonwealth
Games? Vikas Shive Gowda (He won gold medal in mens discus throw event with a
throw of 63.64 metres)
..
24) Who won the gold medal in womens squash doubles event at the
20thCommonwealth Games? Dipika Pallikal and Joshana Chinappa (It was Indias
first gold medal win in squash event at any Commonwealth Games)
..
25) Who won Indias lone gold medal in Badminton event in the 20 thCommonwealth
Games? P. Kashyap (He defeated Singapores Derek Wong by 21-14, 11-21, 21-19
to become the first Indian man to win badminton gold at the Games for 32 years)
1) What is the proposed name of an integrated Ganga Development Project for which
Rs. 2037 crore were allocated in the Union Budget 2014-15? Namami Ganga
.
2) What is the proposed name of a new 24X7 channel for northeast region that was
announced in the Union Budget 2014-15? Arun Prabha
.
3) Rs. 4200 crore were set for an ambitious Jal Marg Vikas Project on river Ganga in
the Union Budget of 2014-15. This project would be established between which two
places on Ganga covering a distance of 1620 km? Allahabad (UP) and Haldia (West
Bengal)
.
4) What is the name given to a dedicated TV channel for farmers that was announced in
the Union Budget for 2014-15 and Rs. 100 crore was set aside for its establishment?
Kisan Television (Kisan TV)
.
5) The fiscal deficit target for year 2015 (2014-15) has been retained at the level
announced by former Finance Minister P.Chidambaram in his interim budget. What is
this level? 4.1% of GDP (The fiscal deficit which had touched a high of 5.7% in 201112, was brought down to 4.8% in 2012-13 and further to 4.5% in 2013-14)
.

6) What is the targeted fiscal deficit for 2016 (year 2015-16) as announced in the Union
Budget 2014-15? 3.6% of GDP
.
7) What is the targeted fiscal deficit for 2017 (year 2016-17) as announced in the Union
Budget 2014-15? 3.0% of GDP
.
8) How much foreign direct investment (FDI) in countrys defence sector was proposed
in the Union Budget 2014-15 presented on 10 July 2014? 49%
.
9) Investments under the most-important Section 80-C has been increased from Rs. 1
lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh (This means that the individuals would be able to invest upto Rs.
1.5 lakh under various heads available under Section 80-C)
.
10) The upper limit for savings in the Public Provident Fund (PPF) was raised to Rs. 1.5
lakh in the Union Budget 2014-15 presented on 10 July 2014. What was the upper limit
for investment in PPF till now? Rs. 1 lakh
.
11) The income tax exemption limit for individuals was raised from Rs. 2 lakh to Rs.
2.5 lakh (It was raised to Rs. 3 lakh for senior citizens)
.
12) The Crisis Management Center for Women (CMCW), that was proposed in the
Union Budget 2014-15, would be established at? Delhi
.
13) How much fund was set aside for the proposed National Rural Internet and
Technology Mission (NRITM)? Rs. 500 crore
.
14) How much fund was allocated for creating smart cities in the Union Budget 2014-15
presented on 10 July 2014? Rs. 7,060 crore
.
15) The foreign direct investment (FDI) in insurance sector was increased from present
26% to what figure in the Union Budget 2014-15 presented on 10 July 2014? 49%
.
16) What is the corpus size of the venture capital for small and medium enterprises
(SMEs), which was proposed in the Union Budget 2014-15? Rs. 10,000 crore
.

17) What special feature has been proposed for currency notes in the Union Budget
2014-15 presented on 10 July 2014? These currency notes will now also integrate
Braille-features to benefit the visually-disabled people
.
18) 5 new Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have been proposed to be established
in which 5 states of the country? Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, Odisha and
Maharashtra
.
19) Complete revamp of Indian Repository Receipts (IRR) was proposed in the Union
Budget 2014-15. What is the new name proposed for IRR in the budget? Bharat
Respository Receipts (BRR)
.
20) The National Industrial Corridor (NIC) that was proposed to be established in the
Union Budget of 2014-15, will have its headquarters at which city? Pune