Banking Awareness
✨ Login to trackThe GA section of banking mains (IBPS PO/Clerk, SBI, RBI exams) asks a fixed block of banking questions: the RBI and its rates, bank types, banking terms, financial institutions, banking history and digital payments. SSC and Railway papers touch it in small doses. Almost every answer is a date, a number or a name-and-role pair, so the topic rewards pure revision.
One page per subtopic: detailed notes, every question type, formulas, tricks and practice sets.
Every formula on one printable page, grouped by subtopic.
4 exam-level questions worked step by step.
72 questions — untimed practice or a timed test with analysis.
Track record in the exam
Test difficulty mix (72 questions)
Question patterns exams keep repeating
Taken from previous-year papers. If a pattern is marked "very common", expect to see it in your exam.
Policy rates and the corridor
very commonThe question relates MSF or SDF to repo, names the Bank Rate, or quotes near-identical rate options.
Place repo in the middle and compute: SDF = repo - 0.25, MSF = Bank Rate = repo + 0.25.
Never call CRR or SLR corridor rates; they are reserve ratios.
If the repo rate is 5.25%, the SDF rate is:
SDF = repo - 0.25%
5.25 - 0.25 = 5.00
5.00%
RBI functions: which is NOT
very commonThe options list banking jobs; the odd one out belongs to commercial banks or the government.
The RBI does not accept public deposits and does not give retail loans.
The ₹1 note and all coins come from the Finance Ministry.
Who issues coins in India?
Notes (except the ₹1 note) are the RBI's job
Coins and the ₹1 note belong to the government
The Finance Ministry, Government of India
Institution, year and headquarters
very commonThe question says 'NABARD was set up in', 'the headquarters of SIDBI is', or gives a three-body match.
Ladder the years: NABARD 1982, EXIM 1982, NHB 1988, SIDBI 1990, SEBI Act 1992, IRDAI 1999, PFRDA Act 2013.
Pair cities: Mumbai (NABARD, EXIM, SEBI), Lucknow (SIDBI), Hyderabad (IRDAI), Delhi (NHB, PFRDA).
Which pair is correctly matched? (a) NABARD - Lucknow (b) SIDBI - 1990 (c) NHB - 1982 (d) IRDAI - Mumbai
(a) NABARD is in Mumbai, so wrong
(b) SIDBI began on 2 April 1990, so right
(c) NHB is 1988, (d) IRDAI is in Hyderabad, so both wrong
Answer (b)
Payment systems compared
very commonThe question says 'the minimum for RTGS is', 'NEFT settles in', or gives a four-row year-system match.
Anchor the years: RTGS 2004, NEFT 2005, IMPS 2010, UPI 2016.
Anchor the money rules: RTGS minimum ₹2 lakh, IMPS cap ₹5 lakh, UPI ₹1 lakh usual.
Which payment system has both a ₹2 lakh minimum and real-time settlement?
NEFT has no minimum and runs in batches
IMPS caps at ₹5 lakh
RTGS starts at ₹2 lakh and settles one by one
RTGS
Which is NOT a feature of this bank type
very commonA bank type is named — payments bank, small finance bank, NBFC — and one option describes a different type.
Payments banks: deposits ₹2 lakh, no lending, no credit cards.
Small finance banks: full banks, 75% priority-sector lending.
NBFCs: no demand deposits, no cheques, no DICGC.
Which is NOT true of payments banks?
They can accept deposits up to ₹2 lakh per customer
They cannot issue credit cards
They can lend money — this is the false line
Answer: They can lend money
Banking milestones in order
commonFour events from different decades must be arranged, or 'which came first' is asked.
Keep one ladder: 1770 first bank, 1921 Imperial Bank, 1935 RBI, 1949 RBI nationalised, 1955 SBI, 1969 fourteen banks, 1975 RRBs, 1980 six banks, 1991 reforms, 2017 SBI merger, 2020 mega-merger.
Arrange: (1) Nationalisation of 14 banks (2) SBI formed (3) RRBs began. Correct order?
SBI 1955, then the 14 banks in 1969, then RRBs in 1975
2, 1, 3
Scheme, year and benefit
very commonThe question says 'PMJDY was launched on', asks for the MUDRA Shishu limit, or gives scheme-feature statements.
PMJDY: 28 August 2014, zero balance, ₹2 lakh RuPay cover, ₹10,000 overdraft.
MUDRA: 8 April 2015, Shishu/Kishore/Tarun/Tarun Plus slabs.
KCC 1998; APY 2015.
The MUDRA loan slab 'Shishu' covers loans up to:
Shishu is the smallest slab
It runs up to ₹50,000
₹50,000
Banking statements: pick the correct ones
very commonTwo or three numbered statements on the RBI, DICGC, NPA or recovery are given; pick the correct combination.
Kill one clearly wrong statement first.
Known false lines: 'CRR earns interest', 'payments banks can lend', 'SARFAESI covers agricultural land'.
- DICGC cover is ₹5 lakh per depositor per bank. 2. The bank pays the DICGC premium. Which are correct?
1: true, principal plus interest, counted per bank
2: true, the depositor pays nothing
Both 1 and 2