New banking laws to come into effect from August 1

The Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025, aimed at improving governance standards in the banking sector and ensuring enhanced protection for depositors and investors, will come into effect from August 1. The Finance Ministry said that the Act, notified on April 15 this year, also seeks to improve audit quality in public sector banks and increase the tenure of Directors (other than the Chairperson and whole-time Directors) in cooperative banks.
 
The provisions of the Act aim to redefine the threshold of “substantial interest” from 5 lakh rupees to 2 crore rupees, revising a limit that has remained unchanged since 1968.
 
Further, these provisions align Director tenures in cooperative banks with the 97th Constitutional Amendment by increasing the maximum tenure from 8 years to 10 years (excluding the Chairperson and whole-time Director).
 
The Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025 contains a total of 19 amendments across five legislations – the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, the State Bank of India Act, 1955, and the Banking Companies (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Act, 1970 and 1980.