This service, developed in collaboration with Citi, simplifies the processing of US dollar transactions, enabling NBB’s corporate and retail clients to send and receive US dollar funds anytime.

By implementing 24/7 US dollar clearing, NBB enhances its customers’ ability to manage cross-border financial operations with greater flexibility.

This service removes the limitations of traditional business hours and time zone differences, ensuring quicker access to US dollars funds and improved cash flow management.

Ali Abdul Karim, group head of corporate and commercial banking at NBB said: “We are pleased to be partnering with Citi to provide this service, which underscores our unwavering focus on delivering industry-leading solutions that empower our customers.”

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The stock market gained for the third day in a row. The market was likely to rise as Donald was likely to return to the US presidency. It is hoped that Trump will take a pro-market stance. The Sensex was up by 335 points and the Nifty by 95 points. Severe volatility persisted throughout the trade.

The trade started with gains but then fluctuated sharply. At one point, the market went into a tailspin. But then there was a strong recovery. The Nifty traded down more than 150 points during the day.

The Sensex remained above 40,000 points. The Sensex closed at 40,616 points. The Nifty rose again to 11,900 points. The Nifty rose to 11, 929 registering 95 points gain. Even though it crashed to 11,756 it made strong recovering and closed at 11,908 points.

The majority of Nifty stocks traded higher during the day. Of the 50 stocks involved in the Nifty, 33 gained while 17 lost. IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, Divis Lab, Reliance Industries and Cipla were the top five gainers of the day.

IndusInd Bank gained 4.89 per cent. IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, Divis Lab, Reliance Industries, Cipla and Infosys gained over 3 per cent each.

Pharma and IT stocks were the biggest gainers of the day. The Nifty Pharma index was up 2.18 per cent. The Nifty IT index gained 1.78 per cent.

UPL, Axis Bank, HDFC, ICICI Bank and Hindalco were the top five losers in the Nifty. UPL was down 3.90 per cent.

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According to a circular issued by the Reserve Bank on March 27, 2020, the moratorium would be applicable for a period of three months from March 1 to May 31. It was later extended to a three-month period until August 31. The only advantage of a moratorium is that the loan will not be declared non-performing if the EMI is not repaid during this period. Banking rules allow interest to be charged on non-performing EMIs. As a result, those who adopt the moratorium will have to pay a large amount of extra interest. The need before the Supreme Court is to avoid imposing such additional interest on those who are experiencing financial hardship.

On September 10, the Supreme Court allowed the central government, which had not taken a clear stand on the issue, two weeks to decide on the moratorium interest. The Center is expected to state its position on the petition again on September 28.

Banks that take a stand against these petitions see this as a case in point that could determine how the banks’ lending business will proceed. In fact, banks contend that the Supreme Court’s consideration of such a petition is tantamount to questioning the fundamentals of the banking system and that it is up to the Reserve Bank to take a final stand on the matter. Proponents of the case have been working to make the actual transcript of this statement available online.

This argument would have seemed correct if it had been stated during another situation. If the basic structure of the credit business is questioned, the credit supply itself will be in crisis. At the same time, banks need to realise that the moratorium on loans across the country is during an extraordinary situation. Those who lost their jobs and saw their incomes plummeting when the COVID scare and lockdown hit the economy, adopted the moratorium as they could not pay the EMI. Banks should not be penalised for giving such temporary relief. It is an inhumane approach for banks to insist on levying fines and interest on interest. Banking experts, who talk endlessly about the basic structure of the credit business, need to keep in mind that during the Covid era, many resolutions would have to be relaxed and a liberal approach would have to be adopted.

Banks struggling to recover corporates’ debts argue that interest should be charged on top of the moratorium on interest rates allowed to the general public. Banks that are not hesitant to relax the terms and conditions when granting loans to corporates are later overwhelmed by the burden of bad credit. It is not appropriate for such banking institutions to adopt a different parameter when dealing with ordinary people in this country. Hopefully, the Supreme Court will intervene in this matter in a rational and humane manner.

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