The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on July 31, 2026, issued the Reserve Bank of India (Payments Banks – Concurrent Audit) Directions, 2026.
These Directions shall come into effect on July 31, 2026.
The following has been stated:
• The Directions establish a comprehensive framework to strengthen the compliance function and corporate governance in Payments Banks. The Directions require every Payments Bank to have an independent Compliance Department headed by a Chief Compliance Officer (CCO), with overall oversight by the Board of Directors. They provide for a Board-approved compliance policy covering compliance culture, risk management, reporting mechanisms, monitoring processes, regulatory compliance, and approval of new products.
• The Directions also prescribe the eligibility, appointment, tenure, independence, reporting structure, and responsibilities of the CCO, including compliance risk assessment, regulatory reporting, monitoring compliance with RBI directions, and advising senior management on regulatory matters.
• Further, they encourage the use of technology-based compliance monitoring systems, periodic internal audits and quality assurance reviews, and repeal the earlier compliance framework while preserving actions taken under the previous directions.
[Notification no. – RBI/DoS/2026-27/427 DoS.CO.ARG.21/08.91.021/2026-27]
