‘Protection of customer interest is non-negotiable’

RBI’s Rao urges NBFCs to build trust

RBI Deputy Governor M. Rajeshwar Rao on Friday urged non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) to give utmost importance to protection of customers as this aspect is “non-negotiable”.

Recalling incidents of coercive recovery practice by some players, Mr. Rao said such developments spurred by purely commercial considerations had dented the credibility of the whole system that flourishes and thrives on trust.

“We should not compromise on the ethos of finance for... ephemeral gains. These gains would anyway accrue to the institutions over the long term if and when it is built on an edifice of trust and mutual benefit,” he said at the NBFC Summit organised by CII. Observing that RBI was inundated with complaints of harsh recovery practices, breach of data privacy, increasing fraudulent transactions, cybercrime, excessive interest rates and harassment, he said, protection of customers was non-negotiable.