RBI bars this bank from onboarding new customers, issuing fresh credit cards

RBI has barred Kotak Mahindra Bank from onboarding new customers via mobile and online channels and issuing fresh credit cards with immediate effect. The action comes after the lender was found deficient in its IT risk management. The bank shall continue to provide services to its existing customers, including its credit card users.

The central bank said that actions are necessitated based on significant concerns arising out of Reserve Bank’s IT Examination of the bank for years 2022 and 2023 and the continued failure on the part of the bank to address these concerns in a comprehensive and timely manner.

"Serious deficiencies and non-compliances were observed in the areas of IT inventory management, patch and change management, user access management, vendor risk management, data security and data leak prevention strategy, business continuity and disaster recovery rigour and drill, etc," the RBI's statement said.

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