The journey of the Cooperative Bank of India Ltd. (COBI) toward securing a banking licence entered a crucial phase as Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, chaired a high-level review meeting on Monday at Atal Akshay Urja Bhawan, New Delhi.
The discussions centred on COBI’s ongoing efforts, procedural requirements, and the roadmap for its transition into a fully operational national-level cooperative bank. The Ministry reviewed the latest developments in COBI’s licensing process and emphasized the need for coordinated follow-up with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
COBI has made notable progress over the past few months. The Government of India notified COBI as a National Cooperative Society and included it in the Second Schedule of the MSCS Act, 2002 on 2nd July 2025, paving the way for its emergence as a national-level financial institution.
Following the notification, COBI submitted a detailed Business Plan to the RBI’s Department of Regulation (DOR), Central Office, on 5th August 2025 for the grant of a banking licence. A subsequent meeting was held with ED–Legal and ED, DOR, RBI at the Central Office, Mumbai on 17th September 2025, during which key aspects of the proposal were discussed. COBI later received telephonic feedback from the RBI on 3rd and 14th October 2025, indicating that the proposal had been scrutinized and placed before higher authorities for review.
In the latest development, RBI communicated its detailed observations on COBI’s Business Plan on 27th November 2025 through the Ministry of Cooperation. These observations are presently under examination, and COBI is expected to respond with the required clarifications and additional documentation.
During Monday’s meeting, senior officials, including Pankaj Kumar Bansal, Additional Secretary; Raman Kumar, Joint Secretary; and Kumar Rama Krishna, Director, Ministry of Cooperation, were present, along with senior representatives from COBI.
With the Ministry closely monitoring progress and COBI actively addressing regulatory requirements, the establishment of a National-Level Cooperative Bank now appears to be moving steadily toward fruition.
