FD details to soon be included in consolidated account statement, says RBI: What it means for investors
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday announced that details of bank deposit accounts will soon be available through the consolidated account statement (CAS). This would allow investors to view information of their mutual funds, stocks and bank deposits in a single statement.
However, the central bank has not clarified whether “deposit accounts”, will include savings accounts, or only fixed deposits. The exact scope of deposits included in the CAS will be known once the operational guidelines are issued.
“Depositories regulated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) are being facilitated to include information related to bank deposit accounts in their Consolidated Account Statement (CAS) through the NBFC-AAs,” according to RBI’s statement on developmental and regulatory policies issued yesterday.
The measure aim to enhance customer convenience and is expected to be implemented by December 31, 2026.
Who gets a CAS and what does it show now?
The depositories and registrar and share transfer agents (RTAs) prepare the CAS and send it to customers who have opted to receive it. The Central Depository Services Limited (CDSL) and National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) are two depository institutions of India and KFin technologies and CAMS are the major RTAs that operate in India.
At present, CAS shows all your transactions and holdings across demat accounts held with securities depositories (NSDL and CDSL), as well mutual fund units held in statement of account form (SOA).
If there is any transaction in an investor’s demat account or mutual fund folio, the CAS will be sent to the investor on monthly basis. In case there is no transaction in any of the mutual fund folios and demat accounts, the CAS, along with holding details will be sent on half yearly basis. This means holdings as of the end of March and September will be sent in April and October, respectively.
What if you don’t have a demat account
Customers, including those who do not have demat accounts, can continue to obtain a consolidated view of their financial information through NBFC-Account Aggregators (NBFC-AAs) and share it too, the central bank noted. This measure is also expected to come in effect by this year’s end.
AAs are RBI-regulated entities that allow customers to securely collect and share their financial information from different financial institutions through a single platform, with the customer’s consent. This can include details about bank account, investment and insurance, depending on the institutions and services connected to the AA network.
What does this measure mean for investors?
For investors, the move would make it easier to get a consolidated view of their financial holdings without having to check bank accounts, mutual fund investments and demat accounts separately. This can come handy while applying for a loan or preparing a financial plan.
It could also make it easier for investors to track their overall asset allocation and review their holdings periodically. However, the exact benefit will depend on which types of deposit accounts are eventually covered under the framework and how the facility is implemented through the operational guidelines.
