Ujjivan Small Finance Bank To Apply For Universal Bank Licence With RBI

The board of directors of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Ltd. approved a proposal on Thursday to make an application to the Reserve Bank of India for a universal bank licence, the lender said in an exchange filing.

Earlier, AU Small Finance Bank and Fino Payments Bank have applied for universal bank licences with the central bank.

Earlier this week, the RBI announced names of a five-member standing external advisory committee, which will evaluate licence applications for universal and small finance banks. The tenure of the committee, which will be for three years, will be chaired by former RBI Deputy Governor MK Jain.

While the committee will have the secretarial support of the RBI's department of regulation, applications for universal and small finance banks will be initially screened by the RBI to ensure prima-facie eligibility, and the committee will evaluate the applications thereafter, the release said.

This is the second such committee by the RBI on banking licences. The first committee was announced in March 2021, chaired by former RBI Deputy Governor Shyamala Gopinath.