Stash estimates go awry, most old notes deposited

BIZ

The government had initially estimated that about `5 lakh crore of the `15.4 lakh crore rendered worthless by the sudden move on November 8 would remain undeclared.

People have deposited nearly all demonetised `500 and `1,000 currency till December 30 which would mean that government may not realise any huge bonanza.

Banks have received `14.97 lakh crore ($220 billion) of the demonetised currency as of December 30, according to a news agency report on Wednesday quoting government sources.

It was earlier expected that a large portion of the unaccounted money may not get presented in the banking system and hence reduce the RBI’s and the government’s liability. This money was expected to be passed on to the government by the Reserve Bank of India in the form of dividend.

Mumbai: Country's second biggest private sector lender HDFC Bank on Wednesday cut its benchmark lending rate by up to 0.90 per cent, joining over a dozen banks and housing finance companies that have slashed rates in last few days. The bank’s asset liability committee decided for a cut of 0.750.90 per cent in marginal cost of funds-based lending rate across multiple tenures. When contacted, executive director Kaizad Bharucha confirmed the move and said this has primarily been driven by the huge amount of liquidity in the system due to demonetisation. — PTI