Banking Awareness of 1, 2, 3 and 4 October 2025

Topic: Reports and Indices

1. Consumer confidence across both urban and rural India saw a modest increase in September 2025.

• This is according to the Reserve Bank of India’s latest reports.
• The Urban Consumer Confidence Survey (UCCS) included 6,068 participants.
• It was conducted in 19 major cities from August 28 to September 6.
• Urban sentiment showed slight improvement.
• The Current Situation Index (CSI) rose by 0.4 points to 96.9 in September.
• This suggests that people feel somewhat better about current economic conditions than they did a year ago.
• Future sentiment in cities also improved. The Future Expectations Index (FEI) went up by 0.3 points to 125.0.
• This shows that optimism for the year ahead remains strong.
• Urban households are increasingly hopeful that inflation will ease over the next year.
• However, many are still uneasy about current price levels.
• Perceptions of earnings in urban areas have steadily improved across the last four survey rounds.
• Expectations for future income are also rising, though gradually.
• The Rural Consumer Confidence Survey (RCCS) was conducted from August 28 to September 7.
• It gathered 8,848 responses from across all states and three Union Territories.
• Rural consumer confidence also improved.
• The Current Situation Index moved further into positive territory.
• The Future Expectations Index for rural areas continued to climb.
• This signals growing optimism about the future.
• Rural households reported a small rise in current inflation perception.
• It edged up by 10 basis points to 5.9% in September.
• However, fewer rural households now expect inflation to rise in the coming year.
• One-year forward inflation expectations fell by 30 basis points to 7.6%.

Topic: RBI

2. The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to keep the repo rate unchanged.

• The committee also continued with a neutral policy stance.
• All six members of the MPC supported this decision. There was complete unanimity in the outcome.
• The repo rate remains steady at 5.50 per cent. This follows a total reduction of 100 basis points since February 2025.
• The repo rate is the interest at which banks borrow short-term funds from the RBI.
• RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said inflation has become more manageable. This is mainly due to a sharp fall in food prices.
• GST rate rationalisation has also contributed to the softer inflation outlook.
• He noted that economic growth is picking up. However, it is still below the level the RBI aims for.
• Malhotra said the effects of earlier rate cuts and fiscal steps are still unfolding.
• He emphasized the need to wait for these to fully take effect.
• The RBI prefers to wait for more clarity before deciding on the next policy move.
• The central bank revised its GDP growth forecast for FY26 to 6.8 per cent.
• This is an increase from the earlier projection of 6.5 per cent.
• Retail inflation expectations for FY26 have been lowered.
• The new estimate is 2.6 per cent, down from 3.1 per cent previously.

Topic: Appointments

3. The name of R. Chander has been recommended by FSIB for the position of MD in LIC.

• On 30 September 2025, 5 candidates from LIC were interfaced by the Financial Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB) for MD's Position in LIC.
• At present, Ramakrishnan Chander is  Chief Investment Officer & Executive Director (Investment Front Office) at LIC.
• Currently, there are four whole time directors in  Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).
• They are R Doraiswamy, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director,and Managing Directors Sat Pal Bhanoo, Dinesh Pant and Ratnakar Patnaik.

Topic: Regulatory Bodies/Financial Institutions

4. IRDAI has given approval for composite corporate agent license to FatakSecure.

• This approval from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) allows FatakPay to operate as well as expand its insurance vertical through FatakSecure formally.
• FatakSecure has now authority to provide motor, health, accident, life, corporate and consumable insurance.
• FatakSecure is a subsidiary of FatakPay.FatakPay is a fintech platform providing credit to the masses.
• A corporate entity having composite corporate agent license is authorised to procure insurance business for numerous types of insurers, which include life, general and health.
• Composite corporate agent license is issued by Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI). 

Topic: Awards and Prizes

5. DRDO won BusinessLine's Changemaker of the Year award.

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation was awarded the Changemaker of the Year Award by The Hindu Businessline.
• The award recognised DRDO’s contribution to indigenous defence technology and Operation Sindoor.
• This year's The Hindu BusinessLine Changemaker Awards highlighted initiatives in education, social welfare and empowerment of marginalised sections.
• The seventh edition of the awards began with a fluteboxing performance by R. Sudhir and concluded with chief guest Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri’s address.
• Kalpana Kumari, MD of Girijan Cooperative Corporation is the winner of Financial Transformation Award.
• Azim Premji Foundation is the winner of Iconic Changemaker Award.

Topic: Taxation

6. The Centre released ₹1,01,603 crore in advance tax transfers to states.

• On October 1, the Union Government released an advance instalment of ₹1,01,603 crore in tax devolution to states.
• This special release was made ahead of the festive season to support development and welfare expenditure.
• The advance came in addition to the normal monthly devolution scheduled for October 10, 2025.
• The government emphasised that the funds would help states meet immediate expenditure needs.
• Uttar Pradesh was allocated ₹18,227 crore, the highest among all states.
• Bihar received ₹10,219 crore, while Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal were given ₹7,976 crore and ₹7,644 crore, respectively.
• Other major states include Rajasthan (Rs 6,123 crore), Odisha (Rs 4,601 crore), Tamil Nadu (Rs 4,144 crore), Andhra Pradesh (Rs 4,112 crore) and Karnataka (Rs 3,705 crore).
• Smaller states were also provided funds, with Himachal Pradesh allocated ₹843 crore, Manipur ₹727 crore, Tripura ₹719 crore and Sikkim ₹394 crore.
• Goa received ₹392 crore, while Mizoram, Nagaland and Meghalaya received ₹508 crore, ₹578 crore and ₹779 crore, respectively.
• The Centre stated that this step would provide fiscal flexibility to states, ensuring uninterrupted welfare and development projects.

Topic: RBI

7. RBI has introduced several measures to support exporters amid global trade uncertainties.

• New guidelines will soon be issued by RBI to extend the forex outlay period for Merchanting Trade Transactions from four to six months.
• This extension will help Indian merchants manage transactions more efficiently and maintain profitability.
• The repatriation period for funds in foreign currency accounts within IFSC Banking Units has also been increased by RBI from one month to three months.
• This will encourage exporters to open IFSC accounts and boost forex liquidity there.
• The reconciliation process in the Export Data Processing and Monitoring System (EDPMS) and Import Data Processing and Monitoring System (IDPMS) will also be simplified by the RBI.
• For bills up to ten lakh rupees, exporters and importers can now close bills by submitting a declaration that payment has been received.
• A revised framework for External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) is being prepared to make regulations clearer and easier to follow.
• The new ECB rules will expand the list of eligible borrowers and recognized lenders.
• They will also relax borrowing limits and ease restrictions on the average maturity period.
• Restrictions on borrowing costs for ECBs will be removed. End-use restrictions for ECBs will be reviewed.
• The reporting requirements for ECBs will also be simplified under the updated framework.

Topic: Miscellaneous

8. Elon Musk became the first person to have a net worth of $500 billion.

• Elon Musk has become the first individual in history to briefly reach a net worth of $500 billion.
• According to Forbes' billionaires list, Musk's wealth temporarily crossed the half-trillion-dollar mark on October 1, before declining to $499 billion.
• Musk owns a 12% stake in Tesla, valued at more than $1.5 trillion, and his wealth has surged this year as the electric car maker's share price surged.
• Tesla reported quarterly deliveries of 497,099 vehicles between July and September.
• SpaceX, another Musk-led company, is being valued at around $400 billion. He owns a 42% stake in SpaceX.
• His artificial intelligence firm xAI was valued at $75 billion in July, according to Pitchbook data.
• Musk’s wealth has fluctuated due to Tesla share price swings and political controversies.
• In September, Larry Ellison, co-founder of business software firm Oracle, briefly overtook Musk as the world's richest person, according to Bloomberg's billionaires index - a rival to the Forbes list.