Cost of free alerts: RBI’s SMS order may dent banks’ income by ₹300 crore
MUMBAI: The banking regulator’s directive to bar banks from charging customers for SMS alerts sent for compliance, awareness, or promotional purposes could result in a loss of fee income of up to ₹300 crore for large lenders, banking officials told ET.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued directions on June 24 barring banks from levying any charges on customers for SMS alerts sent for these specific purposes. Most banks hitherto recovered these costs on SMS alerts by charging customers ₹15-18 per quarter as fees.
