Skip to main content

Who are Account Aggregators?

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has updated the directions for non-banking financial companies undertaking the business of account aggregator.

Who is Account Aggregator (AA)?

“Account Aggregator” means a non-banking financial company (NBFC) as notified under section 45-I of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, 1934, that undertakes the business of an account aggregator, for a fee or otherwise.

“Business of an account aggregator” means the business of providing under a contract, the service of - 

  • Retrieving or collecting financial information pertaining to its customer and;
  • Consolidating, organizing and presenting such information to the customer or any other financial information user.
In simple words, the financial information providers share the financial information of a customer with an Account Aggregator for transferring it to the customer or a financial information user.

What is financial information?

“Financial Information” means information in respect of the following with financial information providers -

  1. Bank deposits including fixed deposit accounts, savings deposit accounts, recurring deposit accounts and current deposit accounts
  2. Deposits with NBFCs
  3. Structured Investment Product (SIP)
  4. Commercial Paper (CP)
  5. Certificates of Deposit (CD)
  6. Government Securities (Tradable)
  7. Equity Shares
  8. Bonds
  9. Debentures
  10. Mutual Fund Units
  11. Exchange Traded Funds
  12. Indian Depository Receipts
  13. Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) units
  14. Alternate Investment Funds (AIF) units
  15. Insurance Policies
  16. Balances under the National Pension System (NPS)
  17. Units of Infrastructure Investment Trusts
  18. Units of Real Estate Investment Trusts
  19. Goods and Services Tax (GST) Returns, viz. Form GSTR-1 and Form GSTR-3B

Who is financial information provider?

“Financial information provider” means bank, banking company, non-banking financial company, asset management company, depository, depository participant, insurance company, insurance repository, Central Recordkeeping Agency, Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN), Clearing Corporation of India Limited (CCIL).

(Updated on February 26, 2024)

CCIL has been included as a Financial Information Provider to provide financial information on Government Securities held by retail investors in their Retail Direct Gilt accounts under Retail Direct Scheme.

Who is financial information user?

“Financial information user” means an entity registered with and regulated by any financial sector regulator.

Who are financial sector regulators?

“Financial Sector regulator” would include Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) and Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance.

Who can operate as Account Aggregator (AA)?

  • Only a company shall undertake the business of an Account Aggregator.
  • Company shall commence or carry on the business of an Account Aggregator only after obtaining a certificate of registration from RBI.
  • Entities regulated by other financial sector regulators and aggregating only those accounts relating to the financial information pertaining to customers of that particular sector are excluded from the registration requirement.
  • The validity of the in-principle approval issued by RBI is 12 months from the date of granting such in-principle approval.

What are pre-requisites for registration as Account Aggregator (AA)?

  • Every company seeking registration as an Account Aggregator shall have a net owned fund of at least ₹2 crore.
  • Companies not having a net owned fund of minimum of ₹2 crore at the time of seeking registration, shall meet the net owned fund criteria within the validity period of the in-principle approval (for grant of registration certification) given by RBI.
  • The company shall have a leverage ratio of less than 7.

What are the guidelines for investments from FATF non-compliant jurisdictions?

  • Fresh investors (directly or indirectly) from Financial Action Task Force (FATF) non compliant jurisdictions in aggregate should be less than 20% of the voting power of the NBFC-AA.
  • Investors in existing NBFC-AAs holding their investments prior to the classification of the source or intermediate jurisdictions as FATF non-compliant, may continue with the investments or bring in additional investments so as to support continuity of business in India.

What are guidelines for customer services by Account Aggregator (AA)?

  • Financial information of the customer shall be retrieved, shared or transferred by the Account Aggregator only with the explicit consent of the customer.
  • An Account Aggregator shall also provide its customers a functionality to revoke consent to obtain information or parts of information.
  • An Account Aggregator shall enable the customer to access a record of the consents provided by him and the financial information users with whom the information has been shared.
  • Customer complaints shall be handled / disposed of by the Account Aggregator within one month from its receipt. If the complaint / dispute is not redressed within one month, the customer may appeal to RBI.

What are other updates in the directions?

  • It was observed that certain entities, which are eligible to join Account Aggregator ecosystem as financial information provider, have on-boarded as financial information user only. Consequently, such entities are accessing financial information from other financial information providers but are not providing the financial information held by them. In view of this, regulated entities of RBI joining the Account Aggregator ecosystem as financial information user shall necessarily join as financial information provider as well, if they hold the specified financial information and fall under the definition of financial information provider.
  • As per NPS architecture, Central Recordkeeping Agency (CRA) acts as an interface between the different intermediaries in the NPS system. CRAs hold information pertaining to the subscribers including the balances under NPS. Accordingly, and as suggested by PFRDA, ‘Pension Fund’ has been replaced with ‘Central Recordkeeping Agency’ as the financial information provider.


References

Government of India. (2021, September 10). 'Know all about Account Aggregator Network- a financial data-sharing system'. Retrieved from https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1753713

Reserve Bank of India. (2016, September 02). 'Master Direction - Non-Banking Financial Company - Account Aggregator (Reserve Bank) Directions, 2016 (Updated as on February 22, 2024)'. Retrieved from https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_ViewMasDirections.aspx?id=10598

Reserve Bank of India. (2023, October 26). 'Joining the Account Aggregator Ecosystem as Financial Information User'. Retrieved from https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=12558&Mode=0

Reserve Bank of India. (2023, October 26). 'Review of Financial Information Provider (FIP) under Account Aggregator Framework'. Retrieved from https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=12557&Mode=0

Reserve Bank of India. (2024, February 22). 'Inclusion of Clearing Corporation of India Limited as a Financial Information Provider under Account Aggregator Framework'. Retrieved from https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=12611&Mode=0


Follow at - Telegram   Instagram   LinkedIn   Twitter   Facebook

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Credit Cards and Debit Cards

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued directions on issuance of credit cards and debit cards. To whom are the directions applicable? The directions are applicable to the following Regulated Entities (REs) – Commercial Banks  Small Finance Banks (SFBs) Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs) Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) for all layers – NBFC-Investment and Credit Companies (NBFC-ICC) NBFC-Factor  NBFC-Micro Finance Institutions (NBFC-MFI)  Housing Finance Company (HFC)  What is a credit card? Credit Card is a physical / virtual payment instrument issued with a pre-approved revolving credit limit that can be used to purchase goods and services or draw cash advances. What is a debit card? Debit Card is a physical / virtual payment instrument linked to a Savings Bank / Current Account which can be used to withdraw cash, make online payments, do Point of Sale (PoS) terminal / Quick Response (QR) code transactions, fund transfer, e...
Post a Comment
Read more

Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR)

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued the directions on maintenance of Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) by banks. To whom are the directions applicable? The directions are applicable to the following Regulated Entities (REs) – Commercial Banks  Small Finance Banks (SFBs) Payments Banks (PBs) Local Area Banks (LABs) Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs) Rural Co-operative Banks – State Co-operative Banks (StCBs) District Central Co-operative Banks (DCCBs) What is CRR? Every bank shall maintain in India by way of cash reserve, a sum equivalent to such percent of its Net Demand and Time Liabilities (NDTL) in India, as the RBI in terms of Section 42(1) of the RBI Act, 1934 (for scheduled banks) and Section 18(1) of the Banking Regulation Act (BR Act), 1949 (for non-scheduled banks) [including provisions of Section 18(1) of the BR Act as applicable to co-operative banks], may specify. What is incremental CRR? In terms of Secti...
Post a Comment
Read more

Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs)

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has consolidated the guidelines governing Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs). Who can open and maintain Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs)? Authorised Dealer (AD) banks in India may open Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) of its branch outside India or a bank resident outside India. Which transactions can be settled through SRVA? The settlement of cross-border trade transactions through SRVA is an additional arrangement for invoicing, payment and settlement of exports and imports in Indian Rupee (INR).  All permissible capital and current account transactions under Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) may be settled through the SRVA.  AD banks maintaining SRVA are permitted to open additional current account for exporter / importer, exclusively for settlement of export / import transactions. What can be the source and use of funds in SRVA? SRVA may be funded by way of inward remittances or transfer from other repatriable INR accounts in t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Payment of Agency Commission to Agency Banks (ABs) and Disbursement of Government Pension by ABs

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued guidelines on the conduct of Government business by Agency Banks (ABs), payment of agency commission to ABs and disbursement of Government pension by ABs. Who are ABs? ABs mean all Public Sector Banks (PSBs), scheduled Private Sector Banks (PVBs), scheduled Payments Banks (PBs), and scheduled Small Finance Banks (SFBs) appointed by the RBI under Section 45 of the RBI Act, 1934, by mutual agreement, to carry out Government banking business of the Central Government (CG) / State Governments (SGs). What is agency commission? Agency commission means the remuneration paid by the RBI to an AB in consideration of it acting as an agent of the RBI in the conduct of general banking business of the CG and the SGs at the places and in the manner specified in the agreement between the RBI and the bank, with the exception of the functions relating to the management of the public debt. What are the guidelines on appointment of ABs? Any eligible bank which intend...
Post a Comment
Read more

Highlights of RBI Annual Report 2025-26 – Chapter 7 to 12

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has published its annual report for the financial year 2025-26. In a series of articles, we will go through the highlights of the report. This is the fifth and final article in the series.  Chapter 7 – Public Debt Management The ways and means advances (WMA) limit for the Government of India (GoI) for H1:2025-26 (April to September 2025) was fixed at ₹1,50,000 crore and for H2:2025-26 (October 2025 to March 2026) was fixed at ₹50,000 crore. The RBI entered into an agreement with the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD), under Section 21A(1) of the RBI Act, 1934, to carry on the general banking business of GNCTD and manage its rupee public debt. The WMA limit of GNCTD was set at ₹890 crore, taking the aggregate WMA limit of all the states / UTs to ₹61,008 crore. The RBI introduced Separate Trading of Registered Interest and Principal of Securities (STRIPS) in the state government securities. Retail Direct Gilt (RDG) account – An au...
Post a Comment
Read more