When the Reserve Bank of India lends to a sound bank that cannot raise funds elsewhere, it is performing the function of
- A.Banker to the Government
- B.Lender of last resort
- C.Custodian of foreign exchange
- D.Manager of public debt
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, lender of last resort. It is the classic central bank function: when a bank is solvent but short of cash and neither the market nor other banks will lend to it, the Reserve Bank lends against eligible securities so that a local shortage does not turn into a general panic and a run on deposits. The marginal standing facility is one modern form of this window.
Option A, banker to the Government, describes keeping the accounts of the Union and State Governments and making payments on their behalf. Option C, custodian of foreign exchange, describes holding and investing the country's reserves under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999. Option D, manager of public debt, describes issuing Treasury Bills and dated securities, paying interest on them and redeeming them. All four are real functions of the Bank, but only one fits the description in the question.
Read the full article: Functions of the RBI: Monetary Policy and Tools
Practice Questions
View allIn which year was the RBI nationalised?
- A.1971
- B.1956
- C.1949
- D.1935
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The Reserve Bank of India began as a shareholders' bank and was taken into public ownership on 1 January 1949 under the Reserve Bank (Transfer to Public Ownership) Act, 1948.
Read the full explanation →The legal provisions governing the management of foreign exchange reserves are laid down in the Reserve Bank of India Act, ______.
- A.1947
- B.1934
- C.1923
- D.1971
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The Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 is the statute that created the Bank and it carries the provisions on the custody and deployment of the country's foreign exchange reserves, which the Bank holds and invests.
Read the full explanation →Which of these institutions fixes the Repo Rate and the Reverse Repo Rate in India?
- A.Ministry of Finance
- B.State Bank of India
- C.Comptroller and Auditor General of India
- D.Reserve Bank of India
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Policy rates are announced by the Reserve Bank, and since 2016 the decision is taken by its Monetary Policy Committee of six members under the chairmanship of the Governor.
Read the full explanation →The Reserve Bank of India commenced its operations on
- A.1 April 1935
- B.1 July 1955
- C.1 January 1949
- D.1 April 1934
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The Reserve Bank of India Act was passed in 1934 and the Bank began work on the first day of April in the following year, with its central office at Calcutta.
Read the full explanation →The establishment of the Reserve Bank of India was recommended by which commission?
- A.Hilton Young Commission
- B.Narasimham Committee
- C.Fazl Ali Commission
- D.Sarkaria Commission
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Formally the Royal Commission on Indian Currency and Finance, it reported in 1926 and recommended that the currency and credit functions then divided between the Government and the Imperial Bank be placed in a single central bank.
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