ICICI Bank cuts lending rate to 9.7%

The country's largest private lender, ICICI Bank, has reduced its minimum lending rate or base rate by 0.05 per cent to 9.7 per cent.

After all major big banks, ICICI Bank has slashed its base rate to match the largest lender State Bank of India and its private peer HDFC Bank.

ICICI Bank's new base rate will be effective June 26.

"From July 1, 2015, interest rates on new loans and advances, will be determined with reference to I-rates (base rates)," ICICI Bank said in a statement.

Base rate is the minimum lending rate offered by banks to borrowers and all loan rates are linked to it.

RBI rate cut

This is the second base rate cut by the bank in the last three months after the April monetary policy by RBI. The central bank had cut the key policy rate earlier this month by 25 bps.

Following this, earlier this month, HDFC Bank and SBI had reduced their base rate by 15 basis points (bps) each to 9.70 per cent.

Since January, RBI had cut the repo rate by 75 bps. Most banks have reduced the base rate by 25-30 bps in response to RBI's rate cut of 75 bps.


Source : Thehindubusinessline