Minimum Balance in Account: The savings account of the bank provides many facilities to the account holder. This includes financial security and a fixed interest rate, among others. All savings account holders are required to maintain a minimum average balance in their account. In addition, if the minimum balance is not maintained on account of savings account, the account may attract penalty.
What is the minimum balance amount for savings account?
Banks have a specific minimum balance limit that the account owner must maintain. Charges will be levied by the bank if the minimum balance is not maintained. The minimum balance limit varies from bank to bank and will depend on the location of the bank.
What is Zero Balance Savings Account?
Due to increasing demand, many banks now offer zero balance savings accounts, as opposed to the traditional practice of keeping thousands in a bank account to avoid fees. According to the Bank of Baroda website, ‘Zero balance savings account is a zero balance account where the account holder is free to operate the account without maintaining a minimum balance.’
SBI minimum balance
In March 2020, SBI decided to do away with the Average Monthly Balance (AMB) requirement from its basic savings accounts. Earlier, SBI account holders had to maintain an average monthly balance of Rs 3,000, Rs 2,000 or Rs 1,000 in their account, depending on whether the branch was in a metro area, semi-urban area or rural area.
HDFC minimum balance
HDFC Bank customers will have to pay service and transaction charges in the current month based on the AMB held in the account in the previous month. According to the HDFC Bank website, ‘It is mandatory for urban branches to maintain a minimum average monthly balance of Rs 10,000 or fixed deposit of Rs 1 lakh for a minimum period of 1 year 1 day (from 1 Jul 22). Average monthly balance of Rs 5000 or Fixed Deposit of Rs 50,000 for a minimum period of 1 year 1 day (from 1st July 2022) for semi-urban branches and 1 year 1 day (from 1st July 2022) for rural branches It is necessary to maintain an Average Quarterly Balance of Rs 2500 or Fixed Deposit of Rs 25,000 for the duration.
PNB minimum balance
The average monthly balance for PNB customers is Rs.1000/- for rural customers, Rs.2000 for semi urban customers, Rs.5000/- for urban and metro customers and Rs.10,000 respectively. The charge for non-maintenance of minimum balance is Rs 400 for rural and semi-urban customers and Rs 600 for metro and urban customers.
