Reserve Bank wont slow down on financial reforms: Subbarao

Noting that the crisis had thrown up a large number of questions on financial sector reforms,Subbarao said effective financial intermediation had played a key role to support India’s high growth.

These reforms could include Indias plan to introduce full rupee convertibility,opening up the banking sector and offshore derivative instruments. The opening up of Indian banking sector was scheduled to commence in April 2009,but this has been deferred. As per the earlier plan,foreign banks would have had the opportunity to own up to 74 per cent of Indian private sector banks and 20 per cent of government owned banks.

The RBI is also going slow in introducing various derivative instruments in view of the recent global financial crisis. Several experts,including former RBI officials,had recently opined that there was a need to revisit the financial reform agenda.