ICICI Bank lowers lending rates by 10 bps

Mumbai: The second largest private sector lender ICICI Bank has cut its lending rates by 0.10 per cent which will make all the loans cheaper, sources said on Monday.

The move comes weeks after it cut its deposit rates and amid calls for banks to quickly pass on the benefits of rate cuts by the RBI, which stands at a full 75 bps since February.

The bank has cut its marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR) across all tenors by 0.10 per cent, they said adding the new rates are effective immediately.

The one-year MCLR, to which a majority of loans like residential mortgages and auto loans are tied, now stands at 8.65 per cent, they said.

Top private sector lenders, including ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank had initiated deposit cuts between 0.10 and 0.25 per cent in the middle of June across select buckets.

It remains to be seen if other banks have also followed suit by announcing reductions in their rates.

At the June 6 review, the Reserve Bank had said banks have cut rates by a measly 0.21 per cent as against the 0.50 per cent cut in key rates and had asked banks to do more.