PM launches scheme for retail participation in govt securities

PTI, Nov 12, 2021, 11:53 AM IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched two customer-centric initiatives of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with a view to providing opportunities to retail investors to participate in the government securities market and contribute towards nation-building.

The two initiatives of RBI — retail direct scheme and integrated ombudsman scheme — would also promote financial inclusion, he said.

The Prime Minister, while launching two innovative, customer-centric initiatives, said these schemes would expand the scope for investment and improve customer grievance redressal mechanism.

The retail direct scheme, he said, would provide access to small investors to earn assured returns by investing in securities and it would also help the government to garner funds for nation-building.

On the Reserve Bank-Integrated Ombudsman Scheme (RB-IOS), he said, it is aimed at further improving the grievance redress mechanism for resolving customer complaints against entities regulated by the central bank.

With the launch of the scheme, he said, “One Nation-One Ombudsman” has become a reality.

The RBI Retail Direct Scheme is aimed at enhancing access to the government securities market for retail investors. It offers retail investors a new avenue for directly investing in the securities issued by the centre and the state governments.

The investors will be able to easily open and maintain their government securities accounts online with the RBI for free. Leveraging technological advancements, the scheme offers a portal avenue to invest in central government securities, treasury bills, state development loans and sovereign gold bonds.

The scheme places India in a list of select few countries offering such a facility.