Savings Account Now Costlier: Minimum Balance Limit Boosted 2.5 Times

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The country's largest private bank HDFC has further tightened the rules for its new savings account customers. After ICICI Bank, now HDFC Bank has also announced a big increase in the minimum average balance limit. This new rule has come into effect from August 1, 2025.

According to reports, customers opening a new savings account on or after August 1, 2025 in metro and urban branches of HDFC Bank will now be required to maintain an average balance of at least ₹ 25,000 every month. Earlier this limit was ₹ 10,000. This means that the bank has directly increased the minimum balance limit by two and a half times.

According to the information given by the bank, this change will apply only to those new customers who are opening an account on or after August 1, 2025. This condition will not apply to existing customers of HDFC Bank at present. However, in future the bank can change the rules for them too.

If a new customer fails to maintain an average balance of ₹25,000 every month, the bank will levy a penalty on him. For metro and urban branches, the penalty will be 6% of the total shortfall or ₹600 (whichever is lower).

It is worth noting that recently ICICI Bank also made a similar big change. ICICI Bank had increased the minimum average balance limit for new savings accounts by five times from ₹ 10,000 to ₹ 50,000. This rule has also come into effect from August 1, 2025. Due to these steps being taken by private banks, opening and maintaining a bank account for new customers has now become more expensive than before.