Last Date To Deposit Or Exchange Rs 2000 Banknotes Nears; SFB Offers 9.5% Rate On Doing FDs of Rs 2000 Notes

A little over 1 month is left for the due date to exchange or deposit the recently banned Rs 2000 banknotes. To give adequate time to the public for return the highest denomination notes of India back to banks, RBI gave till September 30, 2023. As the deadline nears, there is one small finance bank that is offering a whopping 9.50% interest rates to customers for doing fixed deposits in Rs 2000 banknotes. This would be Unity Small Finance Bank.

On its website, Unity SFB said. "Start a Fixed Deposits of your Rs 2,000 notes and get up to 9.50% interest rates per annum."

If you want to do a savings account rather than FDs of your Rs 2000 banknotes, the SFB has covered that as well and is offering up to 7% per annum on these accounts.

Senior citizens are the biggest beneficiaries.

Currently, the SFB is offering FD rates of 8.75% to the general public for over 6 months to 201 days and 501-day tenures. While the FD rate is as high as 9% on deposits for 1001 days tenure.

But to senior citizens, the SFB is offering 9.25% rates on maturities over 6 months to 201 days and 501 days. While the rate rises to 9.50% on FDs for 1001 days.

The SFB also offers Rs 5 lakh deposit insurance by DICGC.

In May, RBI decided to withdraw the ₹2000 denomination banknotes from circulation.

Accordingly, RBI directed members of the public to deposit ₹2000 banknotes into their bank accounts and/or exchange them for banknotes of other denominations at any bank branch.

Deposit of ₹2000 banknotes into accounts maintained with all banks can be made in the usual manner, that is, without restrictions and subject to compliance with extant Know Your Customer (KYC) norms and other applicable Statutory requirements, it said.

RBI also directed that the banks shall to the extent feasible make special arrangements to reduce inconvenience to the senior citizens, persons with disabilities and women seeking to exchange/deposit ₹2000 notes.

The facility for deposit and/or exchange of ₹2000 banknotes will be available for members of the public up to September 30, 2023, as per RBI.

Rs 2000 banknotes were introduced in November 2016 after the withdrawal of the legal tender status of all old ₹500 and ₹1000 banknotes in circulation at that time.