After the ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, has increased the minimum balance requirement for its savings accounts by elevating it to Rs 25,000 effective from August 1, 2025 for new savings account holders. If the account holders fail to keep the minimum balance requirement, penalties will be levied on them. In case of urban and metro bank branches, the penalty is calculated as 6 per cent of the shortfall or Rs 600, whichever is lower.
As specified in the website, the minimum balance for HDFC Bank is Rs 10,000 or a fixed deposit sum of Rs 1 lakh for a minimum of one year and one day in case of urban branches. The minimum balance is Rs 5,000 per month or a fixed deposit of ₹50,000 for the same period of one year, one day for the semi-urban branches. The HDFC Bank minimum balance for rural branches is Rs 2,500 per month. These limits will remain unchanged currently in the semi-urban and rural areas.
What is the hike by ICICI in the minimum average requirement?
ICICI has hiked the minimum balance average requirement for the new savings accounts to be opened on or after the 1st August, 2025. The minimum monthly average balance (MAB) for savings bank accounts till July 31, 2025 for ICICI Bank customers was Rs 10,000. In a completely different approach to ICICI, according to a News 18 report, other lenders like the State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Canara Bank are making the conditions easy for maintaining the average balance requirements.
In the case of ICICI, as per the official notice, the hike in the monthly average balance affects the customers across metro, urban, semi-urban and rural locations. The revised structure states that the customers in metro and urban areas will need to maintain an average balance of Rs 50,000 – a significant jump from the Rs 10,000 requirement.
Also read: What Are Minimum Balance Rules Compared Across SBI, ICICI, HDFC, And Others?
