The Indian banks and regulators amended regulations pertaining to the savings account in the year 2025. These rules involve minimum balance requirements, penalty waivers, interest rates, and peculiar features like an auto-sweep or reverse sweep-dedicatedly so that savings accounts remain easy to use and customer-friendly.
Relaxation Of Minimum Balance Rules
Mostly, one of the critical changes relates to relaxation or waivers of the minimum average balance requirement by many banks. For instance:
- Canara Bank has completely waived away the penalty on non-maintenance of minimum balance in all savings accounts.
- HDFC Bank has not clarified about changes in AMB requirements for regular and super savings accounts. However, its salary accounts and BSBDA are supposed to remain zero-balance ones.
- ICICI Bank has revised AMB for new savings accounts in urban branches to ₹50,000 and fixed rural AMB at ₹10,000, effective from August 1, 2025; these will be applicable for new accounts alone. Existing accounts retain their prior modifications.
SBI MODS Auto-Sweep Threshold Rises
SBI further enhanced its Multi Option Deposit Scheme (MODS)-auto-sweep facility. The threshold amount for auto-transfer of surplus savings fund from savings to fixed deposits has been lifted from ₹35,000 to ₹50,000. This translates to having higher amounts retained in fixed deposits and credited with their interest, automatically once the balance crosses the threshold.
Interest Rate & Bank-Specific Changes
- HDFC Bank continues to offer what is said to be 2.50 per cent per annum on savings account balances with quarterly interest credit.
- IDFC FIRST Bank offers tier interest rates: higher balances (approximately above ₹5 lakh) will earn significantly higher interest.
- The banks are also specifying that the rates may be changed, so customers should always check with their bank for the latest slabs.
Who Gains/What To Watch Out For
Whom The Act Benefits:
- Low-balance accounts benefit from penalties being removed or waived.
- New account holders need to listen carefully to AMB procedures when opening their accounts in urban branches.
- Customers keeping high balances benefit from auto‐sweep and higher slab of interest rates as well.
To Watch Out For:
- Whether the change in AMB is intended only for the new accounts or applied to the existing accounts as well.
- Terms of auto‐sweep (like: how often does money move, how easy is it to reverse).
- Transparency of interest crediting (is the interest calculated on the basis of a daily closing balance or is it credited on a monthly/quarterly basis).
- Charges for fees (some banks may raise charges for the services).
Also Read: Income Tax New Rules 2026: TDS Form Changes From April 1, Full Details