RBI has now directed the Bank of Baroda to stop onboarding new customers through their banking app.
What is the reason behind this decision of RBI? Let’s find out!
RBI Issued Directive to Bank of Baroda To Cease Onboarding of New Customers
On October 10, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a directive to the Bank of Baroda, a state-owned lender, instructing them to cease the onboarding of new customers through their digital banking application, BoB World.
The central bank conveyed, “Bank of Baroda to halt, effective immediately, any further inclusion of their customers into the ‘BoB World’ mobile application. This action is motivated by specific significant supervisory concerns noticed regarding the procedure of enrolling customers onto this mobile application.”
Following the RBI’s instruction, Bank of Baroda released a statement clarifying that they had already implemented corrective measures to address the concerns flagged by the RBI. Furthermore, they assured that they were taking additional steps to address any remaining deficiencies and would closely collaborate with the RBI to resolve their concerns promptly and to their satisfaction.
RBI also stipulated that any future addition of the bank’s customers to the application would be contingent on the bank rectifying the identified deficiencies and reinforcing the relevant processes to meet the RBI’s standards.
Existing Customers on BoB World Should Not Experience Disruption
The RBI emphasized in their release that existing customers already onboarded on ‘BoB World’ should not experience any disruption in service due to this suspension.
In an earlier instance in July 2023, media reports alleged that BoB World had engaged in altering customer accounts, purportedly by associating contact details of unrelated individuals to boost mobile application registrations.
Bank of Baroda refuted these claims, asserting that utilizing unverified or non-customer mobile numbers to inflate app registrations was factually inaccurate. They clarified that one mobile number from a customer could only be associated with a single account on the bank’s mobile application, BoB World.
The bank assured its current customers that they would not face any disruptions and could continue to utilize the mobile application without interruption. Moreover, they emphasized that this directive would not affect the bank’s other digital banking channels, such as Net Banking, WhatsApp Banking, Debit Cards, ATMs, etc., for existing or new customers.
Bank of Baroda concluded by reaffirming their commitment to providing secure digital banking services, highlighting their substantial investments in technology to ensure a seamless and secure banking experience for their customers.
