The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has called on banks to intensify efforts to locate and return unclaimed deposits totaling over Rs 67,000 crore to their rightful owners, highlighting a major push to recover dormant funds held across the country. These unclaimed deposits include dormant savings and current accounts, matured term deposits, uncollected dividends, interest warrants, and insurance proceeds.
As part of the initiative, banks are preparing a special outreach program from October to December targeting rural and semi-urban areas to trace account holders and settle outstanding amounts. Balances in savings and current accounts that remain inactive for ten years, or term deposits not claimed within ten years from maturity, are classified as unclaimed deposits and are eventually transferred by banks to the Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) fund maintained by the RBI.
The campaign will prioritise regions with lower literacy and awareness, employing localized publicity campaigns in multiple languages through print and electronic media. State Level Bank Committees (SLBCs) are tasked with analysing unclaimed deposit data by age profile and concentration across different account buckets to facilitate targeted recovery efforts.
To aid the public in locating dormant accounts, the RBI has developed the UDGAM (Unclaimed Deposits – Gateway to Access Information) portal, a centralized online platform covering approximately 90 percent of unclaimed deposits, with participation from around 30 banks. This portal allows depositors to check and claim funds from multiple banks in a streamlined manner, increasing transparency and accessibility.
Insurance-related unclaimed amounts are governed by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), which mandates that insurers transfer unclaimed funds older than ten years, along with accrued interest, to the Senior Citizens’ Welfare Fund (SCWF) annually. Even after such transfers, policyholders or claimants remain eligible to recover their amounts under the respective policies for up to 25 years.
The SCWF supports initiatives promoting the welfare of senior citizens in line with the National Policy on Older Persons and the National Policy on Senior Citizens. Through these measures, the RBI aims to enhance financial inclusion and ensure that long-dormant funds are returned to their rightful owners, reinforcing the accountability of banks and insurers while boosting awareness of unclaimed deposits among the public.
This concerted effort is expected to strengthen depositor trust and encourage greater engagement with the banking system, while also providing much-needed financial relief to individuals who may have lost track of their accounts over time.
