New Delhi, July 11: As India aims to become the world's third largest economy soon, the banking sector is undergoing a decade-high performance in financial metrics, according to Swaminathan J, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). According to him, the central bank is busy improving the auditing process to safeguard the integrity and stability of financial institutions.

"Auditors and chief financial officers are key pillars of financial integrity and governance in our banking system. Auditors must apply due rigor in their audit processes to mitigate any potential for divergence, under-provisioning, or non-compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements, said Swaminathan at a conference in Mumbai. India Job Creation: 12.5 Crore Jobs Created in India From 2014 to 2023 Show 4-Fold Jump From 2.9 Crore Created During 2004 to 2014, According SBI Study.

Swaminathan said that the RBI has introduced structured meetings between supervisory teams and auditors, exception reporting, and streamlined auditor appointment processes. He also cautioned Chief Financial Officers against the evergreening of loans and fraudulent transactions through certain bank accounts with large corpus amounts without valid reasons.

Swaminathan also emphasised the importance of collaboration between stakeholders in the banking financial system. Meanwhile, India's Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) for the financial year ended March 31, 2024, improved to 64.2 compared to 60.1 in March 2023, with growth witnessed across all sub-indices, the RBI announced. India Set To Make Strides in Quantum Technology, AI, Semiconductor Sector, Critical Metals With US Under Leadership of PM Narendra Modi: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh.

The improvement in the FI-Index reflects a deepening of financial inclusion across the country. There has been a renewed national focus on financial inclusion, promoting financial education and literacy and making credit available to productive sectors of the economy including the rural and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector which has led to the improvement in the FI-Index.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 11, 2024 02:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).