Former RBI Governor Bimal Jalan blames Yes Bank for crisis at private lender; says some steps could have been taken earlier

New Delhi: Former RBI governor Bimal Jalan has blamed Yes Bank for the crisis at the private lender and said some steps could have been taken earlier as the problems in the bank were visible two-three years ago. “I don’t think we should blame RBI or finance ministry for Yes Bank crisis. For Yes Bank crisis, Yes Bank is responsible,” he told PTI in an interview. [caption id=“attachment_3155814” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File photo of Bimal Jalan, former governor, RBI.
Reuters[/caption] Facing the collapse of the fourth largest private lender, the Reserve Bank sacked Yes Bank management and placed it under an administrator in the evening of 5 March with a 30-day moratorium. “The only point that you can make is that the problems in Yes Bank were already visible 2-3 years ago and some steps could have been taken earlier,” Jalan observed. On March 14, the government notified the rescue plan drafted by the RBI under which State Bank of India would pick up around 49 percent equity in Yes Bank. Private lenders joined SBI to shield the banking sector from a widespread crisis by injecting Rs 10,000 crore into the bank with SBI alone infusing Rs 6,050 crore. ICICI Bank and HDFC pumped in Rs 1,000 crore each, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank Rs 600 crore each, Federal Bank and Bandhan Bank Rs 350 crore each and India First Bank Rs 250 crore.