Bajaj Finance Limited, based in Pune, has been penalized by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for failing to adhere to certain RBI guidelines. The financial penalty, which totals ₹2.50 crore, was levied on January 5, 2021.
The company was found to be in violation of the RBI’s instructions on Risk Management and Code of Conduct in Outsourcing of Financial Services by Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and the Fair Practices Code (FPC) applicable to NBFCs. These instructions are part of the Non-Banking Financial Company – Systemically Important Non-Deposit taking Company and Deposit taking Company (Reserve Bank) Directions, 2016.
Bajaj Finance Limited failed to fully comply with the FPC, particularly in ensuring that its recovery agents did not harass or intimidate customers during debt collection.
The RBI highlighted the ongoing complaints about the company’s recovery and collection methods. As a result, a notice was issued to the company, asking it to justify why a penalty should not be imposed for such non-compliance.
