RBI invites comments on Draft Governance Amendment Directions
Summary
The Reserve Bank of India has issued draft Amendment Directions revising governance requirements for Commercial Banks, Small Finance Banks, Payments Banks, and Local Area Banks. The amendments replace prescriptive 'seven themes' with principle-based guidance and rationalize board reporting requirements to enable more focused engagement on strategy and risk governance. Public comments are invited until May 7, 2026.
What changed
The RBI has issued four draft Amendment Directions replacing existing governance requirements for banks with principle-based guidance. The current framework requires banks to report on seven prescribed themes; the draft directions eliminate this prescriptive approach in favor of flexible, principles-based board governance.
Affected banks should monitor the consultation closely, as the shift to principle-based guidance may require significant changes to board reporting structures and internal governance frameworks. Banks should prepare and submit comments identifying any operational concerns or implementation challenges with the proposed approach.
What to do next
- Review the draft Amendment Directions for your bank category
- Submit feedback via RBI Connect 2 Regulate portal or email by May 7, 2026
- Assess current board reporting practices against proposed principle-based framework
Archived snapshot
Apr 9, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Press Releases
| () | |
| Date : Apr 08, 2026 | |
| RBI invites comments on Draft “Reserve Bank of India (Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026” | |
| | The matters to be placed before the Boards of Commercial Banks along with their periodicity are determined by the Board themselves, guided by the seven broad themes prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India. In addition, the Reserve Bank has also mandated certain policies and matters to be placed before the Board for approval, review, or information. In an endeavour to enable Boards to utilize their time effectively, and to facilitate a more focused and qualitative engagement on strategy and risk governance, the Reserve Bank has undertaken a comprehensive review and rationalization of all such instructions. Further, the seven themes mentioned above have been replaced with principle-based guidance on the matter.
Accordingly, in pursuance of the announcement made in the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies dated April 08, 2026, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has today issued the following draft Amendment Directions for public comments.
- Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Small Finance Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Payments Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Local Area Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
The comments / feedback on the draft Amendment Directions may be submitted by the regulated entities and members of public / other stakeholders on or before May 07, 2026 through the following channels:
- the ‘Connect 2 Regulate’ section on the website by following the corresponding hyperlink provided against each document in the page where they are hosted; or
- by email with the subject line ‘Feedback on (full name of the draft Amendment Directions (including the type of Regulated Entity))’. (Brij Raj) Chief General Manager
Press Release: 2026-2027/47 | | The matters to be placed before the Boards of Commercial Banks along with their periodicity are determined by the Board themselves, guided by the seven broad themes prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India. In addition, the Reserve Bank has also mandated certain policies and matters to be placed before the Board for approval, review, or information. In an endeavour to enable Boards to utilize their time effectively, and to facilitate a more focused and qualitative engagement on strategy and risk governance, the Reserve Bank has undertaken a comprehensive review and rationalization of all such instructions. Further, the seven themes mentioned above have been replaced with principle-based guidance on the matter.
Accordingly, in pursuance of the announcement made in the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies dated April 08, 2026, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has today issued the following draft Amendment Directions for public comments.
- Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Small Finance Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Payments Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Local Area Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
The comments / feedback on the draft Amendment Directions may be submitted by the regulated entities and members of public / other stakeholders on or before May 07, 2026 through the following channels:
- the ‘Connect 2 Regulate’ section on the website by following the corresponding hyperlink provided against each document in the page where they are hosted; or
- by email with the subject line ‘Feedback on (full name of the draft Amendment Directions (including the type of Regulated Entity))’. (Brij Raj) Chief General Manager
Press Release: 2026-2027/47 |
| The matters to be placed before the Boards of Commercial Banks along with their periodicity are determined by the Board themselves, guided by the seven broad themes prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India. In addition, the Reserve Bank has also mandated certain policies and matters to be placed before the Board for approval, review, or information. In an endeavour to enable Boards to utilize their time effectively, and to facilitate a more focused and qualitative engagement on strategy and risk governance, the Reserve Bank has undertaken a comprehensive review and rationalization of all such instructions. Further, the seven themes mentioned above have been replaced with principle-based guidance on the matter.
Accordingly, in pursuance of the announcement made in the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies dated April 08, 2026, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has today issued the following draft Amendment Directions for public comments.
- Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Small Finance Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Payments Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
- Reserve Bank of India (Local Area Banks – Governance) Amendment Directions, 2026
The comments / feedback on the draft Amendment Directions may be submitted by the regulated entities and members of public / other stakeholders on or before May 07, 2026 through the following channels:
- the ‘Connect 2 Regulate’ section on the website by following the corresponding hyperlink provided against each document in the page where they are hosted; or
- by email with the subject line ‘Feedback on (full name of the draft Amendment Directions (including the type of Regulated Entity))’. (Brij Raj) Chief General Manager
Press Release: 2026-2027/47 | |
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