About Us

Department of Financial Services (DFS) being the nodal Department of Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) sector administers various Acts related to the banking, insurance and pension sectors. The Department also executes various initiatives and reforms of the Government concerning the banking, insurance and pension sectors in India including adoption of technology and cybersecurity related matters to ensure ease, availability and security of financial services to the citizens of the country. Besides the Department also implements many flagship financial inclusion schemes of the Government extending the benefit of various financial services to the marginalised sections of the society. The Department is headed by the Secretary (Financial Services), two Additional Secretaries (AS) who is assisted by three Joint Secretaries (JS), two Economic Advisers (EA) and a Statistical Advisor (SA).

The major functions of the Department are as follows:

• Administration of all Acts related to Financial Systems/ Public Sector Banks, RBI and State Level Banks/ Insurance such as:
  • Banking Regulation Act, 1949
  • Payment and Settlement System Act, 2007
  • Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881
  • Chit Funds Act, 1982 and Price Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act, 1978, etc
  • Banning of Unregulated Deposit Scheme Act, 2019 
  • Insurance Act, 1938
  • Life insurance Corporation Act,1956
  • General Insurance Business (nationalisation) Act, 1972
  • Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999
  • Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 2013 
  • Deposit Insurance and Credit guarantee Corporation (DICGC) Act 1961
  • Export-Import Bank (EXIM Bank) Act, 1981
  • National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) Act, 2021 
  • National Housing Bank (NHB) Act, 1987 
  • Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) Act, 1989 
  • State Financial Corporation Act, 1951
  • Factoring Regulation Act 2011, etc
• Administrative matters related to Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Public Sector Insurance Companies (PSICs), Public Financial Institutes (PFIs), Regulators and matters related to appointments of Whole Time Directors (WTDs) and Government Nominee Directors in these organizations.
• The Department also provides policy support to the PSBs, PSICs and Financial Institutions (FIs) such as:
  • National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
  • Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI)
  • National Housing Board (NHB)
  • Export -Import Bank (EXIM)
  • National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) 
  • India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL)
  • Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI), 
  • National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Ltd. (NCGTC) etc.
• It monitors the performance of these PSBs, PSICs and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and undertakes policy formulation in respect of the banking and insurance sectors in India. Matters relating to International Banking relations are also dealt with by the Department.
• This Department also deals with legislative and policy issues pertaining to the concerned regulatory bodies i.e. the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). DFS also deals with the legislative framework relating to debt recovery.
• The Department also deals with reforms in the pension sector including matters with respect to National Pension System, Atal Pension Yojna and Swavalamban Scheme.
• In addition to these, work related to the Office of the Custodian (issues pertaining to continuation of posts, budget matters of the Office of the Custodian and Special Court including extension of the Office of the Custodian and appointment of Custodian) are also handled by the Department.
• Implementation of Flagship Schemes of the Government of India-
  • Initiatives and reforms relating to Financial Inclusion, Social Security, and Insurance as a Risk Transfer mechanism; credit flow to the key sectors of the economy including MSME/ farmers/ common man are some of the key focus areas being dealt by the Department.
  • The key flagship schemes being currently run/managed by the Department include:
    • Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), 
    • Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), 
    • Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), 
    • Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), 
    • Atal Pension Yojana (APY), 
    • Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) and 
    • StandUp India Scheme. 
  • Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) which was launched in May, 2020 as part of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan to support eligible Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and business enterprises in meeting their operational liabilities and restarting their businesses in context of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Administration of Scheme for Financing viable infrastructure projects (SIFTI) of IIFCL.