RBI repeals 9,400 old circulars to aid compliance

The Reserve Bank of India unveiled 244 consolidated master directions on Friday, replacing more than 9,400 circulars and guidelines that had accumulated over several decades, according to a statement. This move aims to reduce redundancy and facilitate compliance.

The central bank stated that the exercise, which took five to six months to complete, will bring about a change in how regulations are communicated, interpreted, and implemented, thereby sharply reducing compliance costs and easing access to regulatory instructions for all supervised entities.

“This is only a consolidation, not a change in regulations,” deputy governor Shirish Murmu told journalists in a media conference in Mumbai.

“The purpose is to eliminate redundancy, remove conflicts, and make compliance simpler and more efficient.”

The department of regulation, which administers norms for banks and several classes of financial institutions, has consolidated instructions issued since the 1980s into entity-specific master directions. Eleven categories of regulated entities, ranging from commercial banks and small finance banks to Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) and credit bureaus, now have streamlined rulebooks organized across core regulatory functions.

According to the internal classification shared at the conference, 3,809 circulars have been incorporated into the new master directions, while 5,673 circulars were deemed obsolete and withdrawn.

The final number of documents repealed stands at 9,345. The central bank reiterated that the new framework would significantly ease the process for banks and NBFCs to locate applicable instructions, thereby reducing compliance costs.

A major feature of the new architecture is that each regulated entity will now refer only to directions meant for that specific category. For instance, commercial banks will follow 32 subject-wise master directions, instead of combing through hundreds of cross-referenced circulars.

The responsibilities of boards have been consolidated into single sections, FAQs have been merged into the main text for regulatory clarity, and illustrations are now embedded within the directions rather than being left as annexes.

RBI also issued a fresh consolidated master direction on digital banking channels, merging earlier guidelines on mobile banking, call-based services and other digital authorizations.

According to RBI officials, amendments going forward will be incorporated through colour-coded updates, maintaining continuity with the existing system of tracking changes.

While some circulars will continue to be issued during consultation periods, RBI said most final regulations will now be reflected through amendments to these master directions.

The central bank also said that it’s a one-time exercise, and it will assess whether such measures need to be repeated in the future.