ICICI Bank’s hike in monthly average balance: How it compares with other private and PSU banks

At a time when many state-owned banks, such as State Bank of India (SBI), Canara Bank, and Punjab National Bank (PNB), have scrapped minimum balance requirements or waived penalties, ICICI Bank has adopted a different stance. Effective August 1, 2025, the private lender has significantly increased the minimum average balance (MAB) for new savings accounts to Rs 50,000. Meanwhile, other private banks, such as HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and YES Bank, continue to enforce varying balance thresholds based on account type and branch location.

Here's a quick comparison of the minimum average balance requirements for savings accounts of ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and YES Bank with those of public sector banks.

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ICICI Bank has raised the minimum balance requirement for new savings bank accounts opened in metro or urban areas on or after August 1 by five times, to Rs 50,000-an increase of five times the earlier requirement-while public sector banks have rationalised their fines or eliminated them entirely. However, customers of ICICI Bank who opened their savings accounts before August 1, 2025, will need to maintain the old MAB requirement of Rs 10,000.

ICICI Bank MAB

Effective August 1, 2025, new savings account holders of ICICI Bank in metro and urban locations must maintain a minimum average balance of Rs 50,000. In semi-urban locations, the MAB requirement is Rs 25,000, and for rural locations, it is Rs 10,000. In case account holders fail to meet the MAB, customers will be liable to pay penal charges of 6% of the shortfall in the required MAB, or Rs 500, whichever amount is lower.

HDFC Bank MAB

According to the HDFC Bank website, "It is mandatory to maintain a minimum average monthly balance of Rs. 10,000 or fixed deposit of Rs 1 lakh for minimum 1 year 1 day period (w.e.f 1st July’22) for urban branches, average monthly balance of Rs.5000 or fixed deposit of Rs 50,000 for minimum 1year 1 day period (w.e.f 1st July’22) for semi-urban branches, and an average quarterly balance of Rs. 2500 or a fixed deposit of Rs. 25,000 for a minimum tenure of 1 year 1 day (w.e.f 1st July’22) for rural branches."
If the MAB is not maintained as required, HDFC Bank charges a penalty of 6% of the shortfall in the average balance requirement, or Rs 600, whichever amount is lower.

Kotak Mahindra Bank MAB

For a Kotak Mahindra Bank Classic Savings Account, customers are required to maintain an average monthly balance (AMB) of Rs 10,000. The AMB is calculated as the sum of the daily closing balances in the account over the month, divided by the number of days in that month.
If the maintained balance falls short of the required Rs 10,000, the bank levies a non-maintenance charge equivalent to 6% of the shortfall amount per month, subject to a maximum penalty of Rs 500 per month.

YES Bank MAB

Customers of the YES PRO Plus Savings Account and the YES Essence Savings Account are required to maintain an average monthly balance (AMB) of Rs 25,000. This means that the sum of the daily closing balances in the account over a month, divided by the number of days in that month, should be at least Rs 25,000 to avoid non-maintenance charges.

For the YES PRO Max Savings Account, the AMB requirement is higher at Rs 50,000.
Note that average monthly balance will also differ depending on the type of account and services offered by the banks.

Public Sector Banks

There is no requirement to maintain a minimum balance in a regular savings account at SBI. Since March 2020, SBI has refrained from imposing any penalties for the non-maintenance of the minimum account balance in these accounts. Similarly, Canara Bank has eliminated the average monthly balance requirement for all types of savings bank accounts. Punjab National Bank (PNB) has also announced that it will no longer charge penalties for failing to maintain the minimum average balance in any of its savings accounts.