It isn’t just the common man’s hard-earned money that is stuck in the troubled Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank; even Reserve Bank of India (RBI) employees haven’t been spared either. The central bank’s two employees co-operative credit societies in Mumbai have deposits aggregating ₹191.50 crore with PMC Bank.
The Reserve Bank Officers’ Co-operative Credit Society Ltd, which has nearly 3,500 members, has a fixed deposit of ₹105 crore with the bank.
The Reserve Bank Staff & Officers Co-operative Credit Society Ltd, which has about 8,300 members, has a ₹86.50-crore fixed deposit with the bank.
That the central bank’s two co-operative credit societies placed their money with PMC Bank suggests that its office-bearers, some of whom may have inspected the bank, were confident about its financial strength. Things may have gone wrong only in recent months, requiring the central bank action.
JB Bhoria, a retired senior RBI official and now the administrator of PMC Bank, has his work cut out in putting the bank back on the rails, and ensuring that depositors’ money is safe.
Co-operative societies in the State can invest their funds only with co-operative banks as fixed deposits. To mitigate the risk of a co-operative bank going belly up, they spread their investments across banks.
The Reserve Bank Officers’ Co-op Credit Society has its biggest FD with PMC Bank (₹105 crore); additionally, it has parked ₹100 crore with Bharat Co-operative Bank; ₹85 crore each with Thane Bharat Sahakari Bank and Apna Sahakari Bank; and ₹50 crore with Solapur Janata Sahakari Bank, among others.
The Reserve Bank Staff & Officers Co-op. Credit Society Ltd has parked ₹128 crore in an FD with Bharat Co-operative Bank; ₹86.50 crore with PMC Bank; and ₹59.49 crore with Cosmos Bank, among others.
Meanwhile, the RBI, which had capped deposit withdrawals at ₹1,000 per customer for six months, raised that limit to ₹10,000 on Thursday.