Check minimum average balance requirements for across various banks including SBI, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and so on.
Minimum Balance Rules Comparison: The Private Lender ICICI Bank has recently announced that the minimum balance requirement for savings accounts opened on or after August 01, 2025 will be increased to Rs 50,000 from the earlier Rs 10,000. The move has been met with some criticism from various echelons of society, as it will hamper people with low income from getting access to financial and banking services.
In metro and urban branches, the minimum average monthly balance (MAMB) will be Rs 50,000, up from the earlier Rs 10,000. In semi-urban branches, it will rise to Rs 25,000 from Rs 5,000, while in rural branches, the requirement will double to Rs 10,000 from Rs 5,000. The higher MAMB will apply only to new accounts opened after August 1.
Customers who fail to meet the requirement will face a penalty of 6% of the shortfall or Rs 500, whichever is lower.
In contrast, other lenders like the State Bank of India (SBI) are softening their stance on minimum average balance requirements for both rural and urban metros. SBI scrapped the MAB on all savings account for both rural and metros in 2020.
Likewise, Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Canara Bank had announced the removal of penalty charges for not maintaining the minimum average balance (MAB) in all savings accounts.
