RBI tightens norms for UCBs to utilise ‘at par’ cheques

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has tightened norms for utilising ‘at par’ cheques issued by scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) to cooperative banks for better transparency and supervisory control over co-operative banks.

The RBI said in a notification that it has been observed that UCBs are utilising at par cheque facility extended by Scheduled Commercial Banks not only for their own use but also for their customers, including walk-in customers. An “at par” cheque is payable at any branch of the issuing bank, without any excess charges to the bearer of the cheque.

It is advised to co-operative banks to utilise these cheques for only specific purposes, such as for their own use, for account holders who are compliant under know-your customer (KYC) norms, and for walk-in customers against cash worth less than Rs 50,000 per individual, RBI said in a notification.