Minimum Balance Rules Of Top Banks Explained Here

Regular savings bank accounts require customers to maintain a certain average monthly balance (AMB) every month. AMB is the minimum average of deposits required by the bank customers in their regular savings bank accounts. Leading banks such as State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank (PNB), HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank have fixed their average monthly balance requirements according to the location of a customer's account in urban, metro, semi-urban and rural areas. Banks charge a penalty from the customers who fail to maintain an average monthly balance in their savings account.

Here's a comparison of the average monthly balance in SBI, Punjab National Bank (PNB), HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank:

State Bank of India (SBI)

Customers having a regular savings bank account in SBI branches located in metro and urban areas are required to maintain a monthly average balance of Rs. 3,000, said the country's largest lender on its official website - sbi.co.in. Customers with SBI savings accounts in semi-urban and rural branches are required to maintain a minimum average balance of Rs. 2,000 and Rs. 1,000, respectively.

Punjab National Bank (PNB)

Customers having a regular savings bank account in PNB located in metro, urban, semi-urban areas are required to maintain a minimum quarterly average balance of Rs. 2,000, said the lender on its official website - pnbindia.in. Customers with savings accounts in rural branches are required to maintain a minimum balance Rs. 1,000.

HDFC Bank

Customers having a regular savings account in HDFC Bank branches located in metro and urban areas are required to maintain an average monthly balance of Rs. 10,000, said the bank on its official website - hdfcbank.com. In semi-urban branches, the regular savings account holders are required to maintain an average balance of Rs. 5,000 every month. In rural branches, the customers are required to either maintain an average quarterly balance (AQB) of Rs. 2,500 or set up a fixed deposit of Rs. 10,000 for a maturity period of a minimum one year and one day.

ICICI Bank 

Customers having a regular savings account in ICICI Bank branches located in metro and urban areas need to maintain an average monthly balance of Rs. 10,000, according to the bank's official website - icicibank.com. The average monthly balance required in semi-urban, rural and gramin locations is Rs. 5,000, Rs. 2,000 and Rs. 1,000 respectively.