- Deepak Shenoy criticized RBI's Rs 2.86 lakh crore dividend as disappointing despite Rs 4 lakh crore profit
- RBI retained a large portion of profit in Contingent Risk Buffer, which it has never used before
- Shenoy suggested RBI sell gold and reduce its bloated balance sheet to return more funds
Deepak Shenoy, a SEBI registered portfolio manager and Capital Mind CEO scrutinised the Reserve Bank of India's Rs 2.86 lakh crore dividend, calling it "disappointing".
In a post on X on Friday, Shenoy outlined that the Central Bank clocked a bottom-line of nearly 4 lakh crore, and even then they chose to keep a substantial portion of it into their Contingent Risk Buffer (CRB), instead of giving it to the government.
CRB refers to a specialised reserve maintained by the RBI to cover unexpected financial risks, market volatility, and systemic economic shocks. According to Shenoy CRB is a risk buffer the Central bank has never had to use ever and will not in the future as well.
"A little disappointing that RBI has given just 2.86 lakh crore as a dividend to the government. They had nearly 4 lakh crore of profit. And yet, chose to keep a substantial portion of it into their CRB - a risk buffer they have never had to use ever, and won't," he stated in his post.
ALSO READ: RBI Transfers Record Rs 2.86 Lakh Crore Dividend To Govt Amid Global Headwinds
The fund manager went on to say that he hopes that RBI sell their gold now, reduce the balance sheet size which he called "extremely bloated" so that they can return even more.
"But these hopes, they just remain hopes. We deserve better," he remarked.
RBI's dividend to the government has been in the spotlight on Friday, drawing reactions from economists and fund managers across the board. Shenoy's comments have sparked an online debate on the apex bank's decision.
"Never had to use it… but sir, what if they do? All kinds of unprecedented things are happening in our lifetime," asked one user, referring to the CRB buffer.
"Not sure why some fund managers are obsessed with RBI‘s gold reserves and don't want them to have more Gold!! Gold is sold when a house is in crisis, not because the 'balance sheet is bloated'" commented another user.
RBI's Record Dividend
The Reserve Bank of India has transferred an all-time high dividend of Rs 2.86 lakh crore to the Centre amid the ongoing global headwinds. The record surplus transfer would cushion the government's finances at the start of financial year 2026-27, as the government gears up to tackle the challenge of elevated global energy prices.
ALSO READ: RBI To Conduct $5-Billion Sell, Swap Auction To Inject Liquidity Amid Forex Concerns
The dividend transfer, though marking a new record, is at the lower end of the estimates. Ahead of the RBI decision, analysts had expected the dividend amount to range between Rs 2.7 lakh crore to Rs 3.5 lakh crore.
In the preceding financial year, ended March 31, 2025, the central bank had transferred Rs 2.69 lakh crore to the government. This was preceded by a payout of Rs 2.11 lakh crore in FY24.
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