No extension of Basel II deadline, says Indian reserve bank

Challenges ahead for Indian banks, but RBI remains confident

MUMBAI – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reiterated that there will be no further extensions to the Basel II implementation deadline, which has already been postponed by one year to March 2008.

"There will be no further changes in the deadline for Basel II implementation. The deadline for banks having international presence will be March 2008, while banks having no international presence will have to comply with Basel II norms by March 2009," says V Leeladhar, deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India.

The RBI is confident that banks are on the right track with regard to Basel II but freely admits there are challenges ahead. The credit risk assessment will be particularly difficult due to the lack of rating agencies in India and, as with elsewhere in Asia, finding skilled staff to implement the advanced approaches will be difficult.