ICICI Bank Retreats from Steep Minimum Balance Rule After Public Fury
The Whirlwind: How a Policy Misstep Became a PR Storm
This week, ICICI Bank—India’s second-largest private lender—found itself at the center of public outrage after announcing a drastic rise in the Minimum Average Balance (MAB) required for new savings account customers in urban and metro areas. Under the newly introduced policy (effective from August 1, 2025), accounts opened in these regions had to maintain ₹50,000, a five-fold hike from the previous ₹10,000. Similarly steep increases were slapped on semi-urban (₹25,000 from ₹5,000) and rural accounts (₹10,000 from ₹2,000)
Customer sentiment was swift and negative—on platforms like X (formerly Twitter), users decried the move as “exclusive,” a “blow to the middle-class,” and “totally out of touch with ground realities” . Netizens worried that even salaried urban customers, saddled with EMIs and regular expenses, would struggle to maintain such balances.
The U-Turn: What the Bank Did Next
Facing mounting backlash, ICICI Bank announced on August 13, 2025, a significant rollback:
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Metro & urban MAB slashed to ₹15,000 (from ₹50,000)
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Semi-urban requirement dropped to ₹7,500 (from ₹25,000)
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Rural requirement eased to ₹2,500 (from ₹10,000)
The revised structure applies only to new savings accounts opened on or after August 1, 2025. Existing customers retain their previous standards—₹10,000 for urban accounts