ATM System

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to permit non-bank entities to set up, own and operate ATMs. Such ATMs will be called White Label ATM. The draft guidelines on deployment of White Label ATMs were placed on RBI website for Public Comments. Various issues related to deployment of White Label ATMs were also discussed with the stakeholders. The following benefits are likely to accrue to the rural/ urban areas of all over the country (including Madhya Pradesh):

1. ATM penetration on a per capita basis in the country is expected to improve considerably.

2. There is less presence of ATMs in Tier III to VI unbanked/ underbanked areas of the country. ATM penetration in Tier III to VI unbanked/ underbanked areas will increase.

3. This initiative is expected to boost the Financial Inclusion process.

Connection of Banks with EPS

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has initiated action to expand the membership of Centralized Electronic Payment System (CEPS) making more banks eligible to connect to these systems. RBI issued instructions in September, 2011 by which the access criteria to Centralised Electronic Payment Systems has been rationalized by bringing down the net worth requirement to Rs. 25 crore from Rs.50 crore, thus making more banks eligible for membership of CEPS. Since April 2012, sub-membership route to Centralised EPS has also been opened to all licenced banks who were not participating in these systems on account of either not meeting the access criteria or because of cost considerations.

National Policy on Microfinance

Planning Commission had constituted a High Level Committee on financial sector reforms under the Chairmanship of Shri Raghuram G. Rajan, Professor, Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago in August, 2007. The Committee submitted the report in September, 2008.

The Committee observed that, “despite its success, the future growth of microfinance is constrained by a number of factors. An important issue is the ability of MFIs to raise financing. Given the large estimated demand for microcredit, MFIs need multiple sources of financing, apart from the traditional loan financing from banks. Other constraints include an unclear regulatory environment and the lack of well-developed management information systems and an adequate supply of trained management talent to facilitate sustainable scaling up.”

To provide a formal statutory framework for the promotion, development, regulation and orderly growth of the micro finance sector and thereby to facilitate universal access to integrated financial services for the unbanked population, the Department of Financial Services is formulating Micro Finance Institutions (Development and Regulation) Bill 2012.

Agriculture Development Bank

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) was established on 12 July 1982 by an Act of the Parliament for providing and regulating credit and other facilities for the promotion and development of agriculture, small scale industries, cottage and village industries, handicrafts and other rural crafts and other allied economic activities in rural areas with a view to promoting integrated rural development and securing prosperity of rural areas, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

NABARD provides refinance assistance under Sec.21 (i) of NABARD Act, 1981 for Short Term Seasonal Agricultural Operations (STSAO) purposes for a period not exceeding 8 months to Cooperatives, Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and any other financial institutions approved by Reserve Bank of India. Further, in terms of Govt. of India’s instruction the Short Term refinance to Cooperative Banks, RRBs is being provided by NABARD at concessional rate of interest in order to enable them to provide crop loans upto Rs. 3 lakh for a period of one year to farmers at 7% p.a.

Banks in Rural Areas

There are 93,659 branches of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) functioning in the country as on 31st March, 2012, out of which 34,671 branches are in rural areas and 24,133 are in semi-urban areas, which together constitute about 63% of the total bank branches.

During 2010-11, the SCBs opened 3,294 branches in rural/ semi-urban areas against 1,795 branches opened in urban/ Metropolitan areas of the country.

As per the extant Branch Authorization Policy of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), general permission has been granted to domestic SCBs (other than Regional Rural Banks) to open branches in centres with a population upto 99,999 and in all centres of the North-Eastern States and Sikkim, subject to reporting. In order to further expand the banking network, RBI has advised that while preparing their Annual Branch Expansion Plan, the Banks should allocate at least 25 percent of the branches proposed to be opened during a year in unbanked rural centres with population upto 9999.

Further, under the “Swabhimaan” financial inclusion campaign, banking facilities have been provided to over 74,000 villages having population over 2000.

IBPS CLERKS EXAM SOLVED PAPER

GENERAL AWARENESS 
(With Special Reference to Banking Industry)
(Exam Held on : 27-11-11)

1.    Which of the following organisation / agencies is specifically set up to boost overall rural development in India ?
1)RBI 
2) SIDBI
3) NABARD 
4) SEBI
5) EXIM
2.    Which of the following States has expressed its unhappiness over the agreement on sharing of Testa water between India and Bangladesh? (Agreement was not signed because of the objection)
1) Jharkhand 
2) Assam
3) Manipur 
4) Bihar
5) West Bengal
3.    Banks in India are regulated under ..........
1) Companies Act, 1956
2) Banking Regulation Act, 1949
3) Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934
 4) Special powers conferred on the RBI
5) None of these
4.    Which of the following countries is a major producer of Jute
1) Pakistan 
2) Afghanistan
3) South Africa 
4) Bangladesh
5) Sri Lanka
5.    Compilation of data on industrial production in India is done y which of the following agencies / organizations ?
1) National Testing Lab
2) Reserve Bank of India
3) Census Commission of India
4) Planning Commission of India
5) Central Statistics Office
6.    The President of India visited which of the following countries in July 2011 and held discussions with Mr. Lee Myung-bak, the President of the country ?
1) South Korea 
2) Mongolia
3) China 
4) North Korea
5) Thailand
7.    India is providing financial help to which of the following countries for building a large harbour there named as Kankasanthurai Harbour ?
1) Nepal 
2) Myanmar
3) Bangladesh 
4) Sri Lanka
5) Vietnam
8.    A Savings Bank Account opened with a commercial bank with zero balance or very minimal balance is known as :
1) Savings Bank - Ordinary Account
2) Student Savings Bank Account
3) No Frill Account
4) Current Account
5) Call Deposit
9.    What does the letter 'R' denote in the abbreviation 'BR Act' which controls banking acitivities in the country ?
1) Reformation
 2) Regulation
3) Reporting 
4) Resolution
5) Ranking
10.    'Base Rate' in banks is :
    1) Rate of interest payable on demand deposits
    2) Rate of interest payable on fixed deposits
    3) Rate of interest charged by RBI on long term borrowings of Public Sector Banks
    4) Minimum lending rate decided by RBI which shall be adopted by all Public Sector Banks
    5) The minimum interest rate fied by individual banks, below which they cannot lend funds, except cases like Govt, sponsored scheme
11.    Banking Sector will fall under which of the following ?
    1) Agricultural Sector       
    2) Service Sector
    3) Manufacturing Sector
    4) Industrial Sector
    5) Small Scale Sector
12.    THe Govt, of India has recently added the following currency for allowing Indian companies to raise debts through External Commercial Borrowings
1) EURO 
2) Dinar
 3) Great Britain Pound
4) Chinese Yuan
5) Japanese Yen
13.    A Saving Bank Deposit Account is one where:
    1) The deposits are made only once in a year
    2) Amounts are deposited and are withdrawn as per requirement of the customers
    3) Periodical Fixed amount are deposited monthwie and withdrawal are allowed after a fixed period
    4) The deposits are made once in every month
    5) None of these
14.    ASBA scheme is related to Purchase of :
1) IPO 
2) CP
3) CD 
4) TCs
5) None of these
15.    Who among the following is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha at present ?
    1) Mrs. Pratibha Patil
    2) Sri Mohammad Hamid Ansari
    3) Dr. Manmohan Singh
    4) Ms. Miera Kumar
    5) Sri L.K. Advani
16.    WHich of the following States at the instance of the Supreme Court of India, has decided to conduct electronic auction of Iron Ore stocks to be allotted to Iron and Steel producers ?
1) Gujarat 
2) Bihar
3) Madhya Pradesh 
4) Uttar Pradesh
5) Karnataka
17.    Mobile banking requires :
    1) account with a bank with mobile phone linked to interbank mobile payment service
    2) account with mobile post office
    3) account with bank along with mobile phone linked to international mobile payment service
    4) account with bank and mobile phone linked to interstate mobile payment service
    5) account with bank along with mobile phone linked to interdistrict mobile payment service
18.    Saina Nehwala famous player associated with the game of :
1) Hockey 
2) Badminton
3) Golf 
4) Lawn Tennis
5) Table Tennis
19.    Who among the following is the Prime Miniter of Japan at present ?
    1) Mr. Yoshihiko Noda
    2) Mr. Naoto Kan
    3) Mr. Abe Shinzo   
    4) Mr. Yasuo Fukuda
    5) None of these
20.    Central Drug Research Institute is located in which of the following cities in India ?
1) Jamshedpui 
2) New Delhi
3) Jaipur
 4) Lucknow
5) Dhanbad
21.    Which of the following books is written by the Classic Russian author Maxim Gorky ?
1) As You Like It 
2) Lolita
3) The Mother 
4) War and Peace
5) Alice in Wonderland
22.    Summer Olympic of 2016 will be organized is a city in :
1) China 
2) India
3) Brazil 
4) Denmark
5) South Africa
23.    WHich of the following terms is NOT used in the game of Hockey ?
1) Bully 
2) Follow-on
3) Penalty corner 
4) Center pass
5) Scoop
24.    In a bank the following are the usual types of deposit accounts
    1) Savings accounts, electricity accounts and insurance premium accounts
    20 Fixed deposits, Post office savings bank accounts and current deposit accounts
    3) Current accounts, savings bank accounts and term deposit accounts
    4) Loan accounts, savings bank accounts and term deposit accounts
    5) Current bill accounts and term deposit accounts
25.    When a bank dishonours a cheque
    1) it is called settlement of the cheque
    2) it is called withdrawing of the cheque
    3) it is called nullifying of the cheque
    4) it is called trancating of the cheque
    5) it is called return of the cheque unpaid
26.    The latest merger of bank with State bank of India is :
    1) State Bank of Hyderabad
    2) State bank of Indore
    3) State Bank of Saurashtra
    4) State Bank of Travancore
    5) None of these
27.    Mr. Salva Kur Mayardit has taken over as the President of :
1) Republic of South Sudan
2) Vietnam
 3) Myanmar
4) Libya
 5) Iraq
28.    The most powerful tool used by the Reserve Bank of India to control inflatin is
    1) Raise interest rates
    2) Reduce interest rates
    3) Raise Currency Supply
    4) Reduce Currency Supply
    5) Raise interest rates and reduce currency supply
29.    Sub Prime Lending which was the root cause for global meltdown in banks during 2008 means :
    1) Bank finance for non-productive activities
    2) Bank finance not properly disclosed in its Balance Sheet
    3) Bank finance in violation to the directives of the Central Bank
    4) Bank finance to fictitious entities
    5) Bank finance who do not qualify for the best market interest rates
30.    Which of the following represents female literacy rate in India  (As per provisional figures of Census 2011)
1) 60%
 2) 62%
3) 65% 
4) 70%
5) None of these
31.    Corssing of cheques makes them
    1) Invali document
    2) Inteligible to endorse to a person other than the payee
    3) Remain the same in all respect, it is only a practice
    4) Eligible for payment irrespective of sufficient balance in the account
    5) Ineligible to get cash across the bank counter
32.    NEFT and RTGS in banking terminology speaks of
    1) Various deposit products
    2) Various loan products
    3) Electronic Payment Products within a bank
    4) Electronic Fund Transfer from bank to bank
    5) Cheque Truncation Process
33.    The Head Quarters of the World Bank is located in
1) London
 2) Paris
3) New York 
4) Tokyo
5) None of these
34.    Which of the following schemes is lanuched by the Govt. of India only for school children?
1) Kutir Jyoti 
2) Kishor Jeevan
3) Aadhaar 
4) SEWA
5) None of these
35.    Which of the following days is observed as 'World Ozone Day'?
1) 10th August
 2) 16th October
3) 16th September 
4) 10th December
5) 19th January
36.    Which of the following Awards is given by the Govt of Mdhya Pradesh for eexcellence in the field of classical music / dance etc. ?
1) Saraswati Samman
2) Kalidas Samman
3) Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award
4) Sahitya Akademi Award
5) None of these
37.    The ownership of Public sector banks rests
    1) Wholly with Government of India
    2) Jointly with Government of India and State Bank of India
    3) Wholly with shareholders from the public
    4) Jointly with Government of India and Reserve Bank of India
    5) Jointly with Government of India and shareholders from the public
38.    Which of the Cups / Trophies is associated with the game of Cricket ?
1) Azlan Shah Cup 
2) Davis Cup
3) Nehru Gold Cup 
4) Ranji Trophy
5) Wimbledon Trophy
39.    Which of the following is the currency of South Korea ?
1) Yen 
2) Kyat
3) Won 
4) Rupee
5) Ringit
40.    Who among the following is the Railway Minister of India at present ?
    1) Sri Sharad Pawar   
    2) Sri Virbhadra Singh
    3) Smt. Ambika Soni   
    4) Sri Dinesh Trivedi
    5) None of these
41.    WHo among the following was a famour Scientist and is known as the, 'Father of India's Nuclear Programme ?
    1) Dr. Homi J. Bhabha
    2) Dr. Satyendra Nath Bose
    3) Dr. Vikram Sarabhai
    4) Dr. Satish Dhawan
    5) Dr. C.V. Raman
42.    Which of the following Awards was given to Dr. M. S. Ahluwalia in 2011 by the Govt. of India?
    1) Padma Vibhushan   
    2) Padmashree
    3) Bharat Ratna   
    4) Man of the Year
    5) Man of the Decade
43.    Which of the following awards is given to Dr. Harish Hande and Ms. Nileema Mishra recently ?
    1) Ramon Magsaysay
    2) Booker Prize
    3) Golden Pen Award
    4) Mercy Ravi Award
    5) Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
44.    Which of the following pacts / agreement will allow agfhanistan to sell its goods in India without paying any tax ?
    1) SAFTA   
    2) Free Market Agreement
    3) Most Favoured Nation Pact
    4) Agreement for Direct Foreign Investment
    4) Agreement to help Least Developed Countries
45.    Non performing assets mean .................
    1) the assets have stopped giving losses to a bank
    2) the assets have stopped giving capital to a bank
    3) the assets have stopped giving income to a bank
    4) the assets have stopped giving income and expenses to a bank
    5) the assets have stopped giving expenses to a bank
46.    Which of the following banks in India has maximum number of branches and ATMs in India ?
    1) IDBI Bank   
    2) Bank of India
    3) Punjab National Bank
    4) ICICI Bank
    5) State Bank of India
47.    EFT means :
    1) Effective Funds Transfer
    2) Efficient FUnds Transfer
    3) Easy Funds Transfer
    4) Elecronic Funds Transfer
    5) Electric FUnds Transfer
48.    UNESCO is an organization working in the field of
    1) Social Welfare
    2) Protecting interest of prisoners of war
    3) Framing international laws
    4) International Collaboration through education, culture and science
    5) Protecting children's right
49.    If a cheque is post dated
    1) bank on whom it is drawn will not honour the cheque before the date of the cheque
    2) bank on whom it is drawn has to honour the cheque before the date of the cheque
    3) bank on whom it is drawnhas the option to honour the cheque before the date of the cheque or not
    4) bank on whom it is drawn has to refer to RBI to bonour the cheque before the date of the cheque
    5) bank on whom it is drawn has to reer to the court to honour the cheque before the date fo the cheuqe
50.    Which of the following countries is a Member of G-8?
1) Iran 
2) Turkey
3) France 
4) Brazil
5) China

ANSWERS:
  1) 3    2) 5   3) 2    4) 4    5) 5    6) 1    7) 4    8) 3    9) 2    10) 5 
11) 4    12) 4   13) 2    14) 1    15) 2    16) 5    17) 1    18) 2        19) 1    20) 4 
21) 3    22) 3    23) 2    24) 3        25) 5    26) 2    27) 1    28) 1    29) 5   30) 3     
31) 2    32) 4    33) 5    34) 5    35) 3    36) 2       37) 4    38) 4    39) 3    40) 4
41) 1    42) 1        43) 1    44) 1    45) 3    46) 5    47) 4    48) 4    49) 1    50) 3 

SBI launches ‘virtual' card for online transactions

State Bank of India has launched a ‘virtual' electronic debit card for e-commerce transactions.

The ‘State Bank Virtual' card can be created by a customer using the bank's Internet Banking facility with transaction rights.

The product allows the user to create a virtual card for any online transaction and the customer is not required to share the details of the principal account on the merchant Web site, said the bank in a statement.

The new product is a convenient and secure gateway to online payment for SBI's Internet banking users. Among the features of the virtual card are: no charges on creation of the card and the customer can create any number of cards at the same time. The card is created for each online transaction and is valid for a maximum of 48 hours.

There is no transfer of balance from the principal account inasmuch as only a lien is marked on the account. The minimum amount with which the card can be loaded with is Rs 100. There is no upper limit.

Transfer of balance takes place only when the customer does the actual transaction online.

Punjab National Bank slashed Lending Rates by 25 Basis Points

Punjab National Bank (PNB) the second largest public sector bank on 19 April 2012 reduced lending rates by lowering their benchmark rates by 25 basis points.
The bank reduced its base rate and prime lending rate (PLR) by 25 bps from 10.75% to 10.50% in the case of base rate and from 14.25% to 14% in the case of PLR. In addition to the cut in the base rate, PNB also lowered interest rates on home and car loans. Home loans of up to 75 lakh rupees will carry interest of 10.75% and for loans above 75 lakh rupees the rate is pegged at 11%. Car loans will be priced at 12%. This reduction will apply to new and existing customers.
The bank’s move came in the backdrop of the RBI’s decision to cut down the key policy rates. The RBI on 17 April 2012 had slashed the repo rate and reverse repo rate by 50 basis points.

Printing of MICR, IFSC code must on passbook

The Reserve Bank has made it mandatory for all banks to print the MICR and IFSE code on the passbook and statement of account of the customers.

“Currently, the MICR code is available on the cheque leaf along with the IFSC code of the branch. On a review it has been decided that this information should also be made available in the passbook/statement of account of the account holders,” RBI said in a statement.

As per RBI guidelines, MICR code is necessary for all electronic clearing services (credit and debit) transactions.

IFSC code is a pre-requisite for national electronic funds transfer (NEFT) and real time gross settlement (RTGS) transactions.

Karnataka signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mizuho Corporate Bank of Japan

Karnataka government on 19 April 2012 signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Mizuho Corporate Bank of Japan.
The high-level delegation from Karnataka met senior officials of Mizuho Corporate Bank. The MoU for mutual co-operation and investment promotion was signed between Karnataka Udyog Mitra and Mizuho Corporate Bank.
The delegation, led by Murghesh Nirani, Minister for Large and Medium Industries, is conducting a road show in Japan to attract investments for the forthcoming Global Investors Meet in June.
The delegation during its meeting held with the management teams of Honda, Toyota and Sony asked the companies to continue their association with the state.
The Minister also held meeting with several other Japanese companies including Mitsubishi, Hitachi, East Nippon Expressway Company in order to encourage them to invest in the state.