Cabinet approves revision of guidelines of Sovereign Gold Bonds Scheme
PrintListen to this Article
Two sets of changes have been made in the scheme:
I. Specific changes have been made in the attributes of the scheme to make it more attractive, mobilise finances as per the target and reduce the economic strains caused by imports of gold and reduce the Current Account Deficit (CAD).
II. Flexibility has been given to Ministry of Finance to design and introduce variants of SGBs with different interest rates and risk protection / pay-offs that would offer investment alternatives to different category of investors. Ministry of Finance (the issuer) has been delegated this power to amend / add to the features of the Scheme with approval of the Finance Minister to reduce the time lag between finalizing the attributes of a particular tranche and its notification. Such flexibility will be effective in addressing the elements of competition with new products of investment, to deal with very dynamic and sometimes volatile market, macro-economic and other conditions such as gold price.
Following specific changes in the scheme have been approved:
i. The investment limit per fiscal year has been increased to 4 kg for individuals, 4 Kg for Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) and 20 Kg for Trusts and similar entities notified by the Government from time to time.
ii. The ceiling will be counted on Financial year basis and will include the SGBs purchased during the trading in the secondary market.
iii. The ceiling on investment will not include the holdings as collateral by Banks and Financial institutions.
iv. SGBs will be available 'on tap’. Based on the consultation with NSE, BSE, Banks and Department of Post, features of product to emulate 'On Tap' sale would be finalised by Ministry of Finance.
v. To improve liquidity and tradability of SGBs, appropriate market making initiatives will be devised. Market makers, could be commercial banks or any other public sector entity, such as MMTC or any other entity as decided by Gol.
vi. The Government may, if so felt necessary, allow higher commission to agents.
Background:
Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) Scheme was notified by the Government of India on November 05, 2015 after due approval of the Cabinet. The main objective of the scheme was to develop a financial asset as an alternative to purchasing metal gold. The target was to shift part of the estimated 300 tons of physical bars and coins purchased every year for Investment into 'demat' gold bonds. The target mobilisation under the scheme at Rs. 15,000 crore in 2015-16 and at Rs.10,000 crore in 2016-17. The amount so far credited in Government account is Rs. 4,769 crore.
In view of less than expected response of the investors to the scheme, and considering its bearing on CAD and consequently on overall macro-economic health of the country, it was felt necessary to make changes in this scheme to make it a success. #casansaar (Source - PIB)
Category : RBI | Comments : 0 | Hits : 377
RBI has issued draft rules to tighten dividend payouts by banks by linking distributions to capital adequacy, asset and profit quality, setting a uniform prudential framework effective from FY27. In the previous financial year, banks paid over Rs 75,000 crore dividend after booking record profits. Under RBI's draft rules, dividend payments by banks will be governed by a common set of conditions from FY27. The directions apply to all banking companies, corresponding new banks and SBI, and ...
Listing of an Indian company on international stock exchanges got a push with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) coming out with regulations under Foreign Exchange Management (FEMA). Experts believe new regulations will help companies utilise foreign exchange more effectively. Regulations have been made public through two notifications. First set of regulations deals with mode of payment and reporting of non-debt instruments. “The proceeds of purchase / subscription of equity shares of an ...
The Lok Sabha elections 2024 are in full swing with electioneering adding much colour to the entire process. However, to ensure that there is no wrongdoing, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has sent a missive to Payment System Operators (PSOs) asking them to keep a watch on all suspicious high-value transactions that they may come across in their systems. The general purpose of the letter is to deny the use of electronic fund transfer mechanism to anyone who is intending to influence the election...
he Reserve Bank on Tuesday came out with draft guidelines to further strengthen regulations on payment aggregators, a move aimed at boosting the payment ecosystem. The draft also covers the physical point-of-sale activities of payment aggregators (PAs). The RBI said that given the growth in digital transactions and the significant role that PAs play in this space, the current directions on PAs are proposed to be updated and cover, inter alia, KYC and due diligence of merchants, operations ...
The RBI on Monday eased rules to allow resident entities to hedge their exposures to the price risk of gold using the OTC derivatives in the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in addition to the derivatives on the exchanges in the IFSC. Resident entities such as banks were permitted to hedge their exposure to the price risk of gold on the exchanges in the IFSC that are recognised by the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), and the new directive provides them...
Comments