ICICI Bank has rolled back part of its recent hike in minimum average balance (MAB) requirements, reducing it from ₹50,000 to ₹15,000 for new customers in urban areas. This change follows strong customer backlash after the bank, India’s second-largest, had raised the MAB from ₹10,000 to ₹50,000 for new urban account holders. Despite the reduction, the revised MAB is still ₹5,000 higher than the previous threshold.
For new customers in semi-urban areas, the MAB has also been cut significantly—from ₹25,000 to ₹7,500. Meanwhile, for existing customers in rural and semi-urban locations, the MAB remains unchanged at ₹5,000.
ICICI Bank’s initial decision to sharply increase the MAB contrasted with other major banks that have moved toward more customer-friendly policies. For instance, State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest bank, removed the minimum balance requirement entirely back in 2020. Most other banks continue to maintain far lower MAB thresholds, generally between ₹2,000 and ₹10,000, making ICICI’s earlier hike a notable outlier.
