The State Bank of India Chairman, Mr O.P. Bhatt, said the Reserve Bank of India has not understood the bank's special home loan product.
Asked whether the banking regulator was unfair in its judgment on the special home loan scheme, the SBI chief said: “You can draw your own conclusions. But, obviously, they (the RBI) have not understood our special home loan product.”
Mr Bhatt spoke to the media at a briefing at the SBI headquarters on Wednesday, a day prior to demitting office, after a five-year stint at the helm of India's largest bank.
Despite the RBI's concerns about SBI's teaser home loans scheme, the Government appears convinced about the ‘inclusiveness' of the scheme. The Economic Survey 2010-11 says the fact that the scheme enabled many new home-buyers to enter the market speaks well of the inclusiveness of the scheme, even though the sub-prime segment was deliberately left out.
SBI's special home loan product offers loans at a comparatively lower rate of interest for the first few years, after which rates are reset at higher rates.