Liquidity window opened for transport, hotels and tourism
To address the adverse impact of the second wave of the Covid 19 pandemic, Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced an ontap additional liquidity window for Rs 15,000 crore for contact-intensive sectors, including hotels and restaurants, transport, tourism, event management companies and beauty salons.
Besides it also raised the aggregate debt eligibility threshold to struggling businesses to Rs 50 crore from Rs 25 crore. Under the on-tap liquidity window, banks can provide loans of three-year tenures to “certain contact-intensive sectors
i.e., hotels and restaurants; tourism–travel agents, tour operators and adventure/heritage facilities; aviation ancillary services – ground handling and supply chain; and other services that include private bus operators, car repair services, rent-a-car service providers, event/ conference organisers, spa clinics, and beauty parlours/saloons.
Banks are expected to create a separate Covid loan book under the scheme,” the RBI said. Banks are to be incentivised by being permitted to park their surplus liquidity up to the size of their loan book under the scheme, with the reverse repo window at a rate 40 basis points higher than the reverse repo rate.
Heeding to the industry demand, the RBI also expanded the scope of borrowers by raising the maximum aggregate exposure threshold from Rs 25 crore to Rs 50 crore for smaller businesses and loans to individuals for business purposes.
For liquidity, another GSAP operation under GSAP 1.0 will be conducted in June and GSAP 2.0 in Q2.