Finance Ministry planning to organise 2 Day PSB Manthan

The Finance Ministry is planning to organise a two-day PSB Manthan from September 12 to discuss and design the next wave of reforms for public sector banks (PSBs). MD&CEOs of all 12 PSBs will participate in the event to discuss on improving the performance of Public Sector Banks. Focus will be on continuing the EASE (Enhanced Access & Service Excellence) journey and implementing next-generation reforms.

The last Manthan was held in April 2022, where six working groups were formed to suggest improvements in areas like customer service, digitisation, HR incentives, corporate governance and inter-bank collaboration. The idea of EASE reforms originally came from the PSB Manthan held in November 2017.

This round of discussions comes at a time when PSBs are reporting record profits. Together, the banks earned ₹1.78 lakh crore in FY25, a 26% jump from the previous year. SBI contributed more than 40% of the total profit, reporting a net profit of ₹70,901 crore. PNB saw the highest growth in percentage terms, with profits more than doubling to ₹16,630 crore.

The government has previously used such brainstorming sessions to push big reforms. Earlier, two Gyan Sangam events were held in 2015 and 2016 and major decisions were held in the banking and financial sector.

Now, the Finance Ministry aims to use the upcoming Manthan to prepare a roadmap for future growth by strengthening governance, promoting digitisation, improving customer service, and ensuring long-term financial health.

It’s expected that some important discussions may be held in this meeting. More details will be released soon.