Why non-bank lenders continue to come under regulatory axe?

MUMBAI: Non-bank Financial Companies (NBFCs) have never been under so much regulatory fire like they are in 2024.

To be factually correct, the Reserve Bank’s axe has fallen on even large banks such as HDFC Bank, Bank of Baroda and Kotak Mahindra in recent times. What is more noteworthy is that all these are happening right under the watch of the present governor Shaktikanta Das, whose five-year stint on the 18th floor corner office of the Mint Road Headquarters is coming to end on December 10.

Does this mean that the regulator has become hyper-active or is it that regulated entities have become less responsive to the regulatory demands? Or is it a mix of both, along with the fast-changing technological landscape that’s sweeping the financial services industry?

Analysts are in unison in placing most of the blame on the regulated entities saying the number of black-sheep is growing as the pie is galloping–there are over 9,000 RBI-registered NBFCs and close to two dozens of them are systematically important upper tier NBFCs. “It’s not a question of regulatory overarching or that the monetary authority is over-zealous in applying its breaks. The present governor has been most considerate in getting the industry views along while framing regulations,” the head of the BFSI vertical at a foreign brokerage told TNIE.

“The current RBI administration has also been more considerate before taking stern regulatory actions. What’s happening is that NBFCs in their bid to pay higher returns to their foreign/external investors are focusing only on growth at any cost. This is where they have been throwing the basic regulatory principles into the wind, so the worst breaches are spotted now,” the person cited above elaborated, seeking anonymity.