The State Bank of India (SBI) launched a new fixed deposit (FD) scheme called Amrit Vrishti with a 444-day tenure on July 15, 2024. This FD offers the general public a 7.25 per cent annual interest and an additional 0.50 per cent to senior citizens, bringing it to 7.75 per cent per annum.

Currently, SBI’s 400-day Amrit Kalash FD, open till September 30, 2024, offers elderly customers 7.60 per cent annually. This special FD has been extended several times since its launch in February 2023. SBI’s other special FD, WeCare, has also been extended, and its last date is also set for September 30, 2024. The WeCare FD has a tenure of 5-10 years and offers an additional 1 per cent or 100 basis points interest to senior citizens compared to others.

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Interest Rate For 444-Day Amrit Vrishti And Other FDs:

“To give a boost to deposit mobilisation efforts in the retail segment, it has been decided to introduce a new retail term deposit scheme for a specific tenor with the added benefit in terms of interest rate,” SBI said in a circular while launching Amrit Vrishti.

SBI is a late entrant in the 444-day FD segment, as other banks already have FDs for this tenure. SBI is offering senior citizens the highest rate of 7.75 per cent for the Amrit Vrishti FD scheme.

On June 15, it revised the rates for its regular FDs, offering 6.75 per cent interest on FDs of 180 to 210 days, 7.00 per cent for 211 days to less than a year, 7.30 per cent for one year to less than two years, and 7.50 per cent for two years to less than three years. On its three-year to less than five-year FDs, seniors can get 7.25 per cent, and 7.50 per cent for five to up to 10 years. These rates are for callable FDs that are allowed to withdraw prematurely by paying a penalty.

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Other Developments:

On July 15, the bank raised its marginal cost of fund-based lending rate (MCLR) by five to 10 per cent, its minimum lending rate. While increasing the MCLR, the bank also launched the Amrit Vrishti FD scheme, which offers higher interest rates for seniors and the general public.

SBI’s MCLR revision comes as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been asking banks to keep their credit deposit ratio in check; given that credit growth is exceeding deposit growth. As such, banks are competing to get more customer deposits.