Raghav Chadha recently raised concerns in Parliament regarding the large amount of money collected by banks through various customer charges. According to figures discussed during the session, banks reportedly collected nearly ₹3,500 crore in the financial year 2022–23 from penalties such as minimum balance charges, ATM usage fees, and account inactivity charges.
The issue highlights how small deductions from millions of bank customers can accumulate into a significant amount for financial institutions. Minimum balance penalties are among the most common charges applied when account holders fail to maintain the required balance in their bank accounts.
Apart from these penalties, banks also charge customers for services such as ATM withdrawals beyond free limits, SMS alerts, account statements, and certain loan processing services. While these charges are part of standard banking practices, many customers remain unaware of how frequently they are applied.
During the discussion, Raghav Chadha emphasized the need for greater transparency in banking charges. He stated that customers should clearly understand the fees being deducted from their accounts and how banks calculate these service charges.