Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Concept of Deposit

The excess of income over consumption requirement is saved. Such savings are deposited in commercial banks, even amounts to be spent for consumption purposes are deposited in commercial banks. Payment for goods and services is made in cheques drawn on banks. Banking habit is growing faster. People deposit their earnings in commercial banks because banks vaults are safer than home coffers and they pay interest according to the kind of deposits.

It is important that the commercial bank’s deposit policy is the most essential policy for its existence. The growth of banks depends primarily upon the growth of its deposits. The volume of funds that management will use for creating income through loans and investment is determined largely by the bank’s policy governing deposits. In other words, when the policy is restrictive, the growth of bank is restated or accelerated with the liberalization in the deposit policy. In banking business, the volume of credit extension much depends upon the deposit base of a bank. The deposit creating powers of commercial banks forces to raise the assets along with the liabilities side of the balance sheet. In other words, assets give rise to liabilities. Traditionally, the deposit structure of a commercial bank was thought to be determined by the depositors and not by bank management. There are regular changes in this view in the modern banking industry. Thus banks have evolved from relatively passive acceptors of depositors to achieve bidders for funds. Depositors are one of the aspects of the bank liabilities that management has been influencing through deliberate action (Vaidya, 1999:68).

Thus, bank deposit is subject to various form of classification. The deposits are generally classified based on ownership, security and the availability of funds. There are two types of deposit which are as follows.

a) Interest Bearing Deposit
Deposit in which banks are required to pay interest is known as interests bearing deposit. Saving, Term (Fixed), Call and Recurring deposit are interest bearing deposit.

(i) Saving Deposit
A saving deposit is one in which middle class people and general server open a limited amount of money that can be withdrawn and low level of interest will be provided by bank. This is a very common and general deposit account, which is suitable for those classes of people who want to save some portion of their earnings or the money left after the consumption. Initial deposit as decided by the bank must be made to open the Saving Accounts. There are some restrictions in withdrawing money at the same time the limitation depends as per nature of the economy and from one country to the other country or every one bank to the other.

(ii) Fixed Deposit of Time Deposit
This is a kind of deposit in which banks offers fixed interest rate on the deposit and repays principal together with interest at fixed maturity or pays interest on regular interval. So the money deposited in this account can be utilized by banks for medium or long term credit freely being confident that the depositors will not come to claim until the time lapses. Normally higher interest rate is offered for long term deposit and lower interest rate for short term deposit. The time deposit is the main source of commercial banks for their credit operation. Investment in medium term and long purposes is possible only through this type of deposit. However, the depositor can take loan under security. In this context of Nepal, fixed deposit has been classified according to the following durations: -
• Quarterly
• Semi-annually
• Annually
• Annually and above

(iii) Call Deposit
Call deposit incorporates the characteristics of current and saving deposit in the sense deposit is withdrawn able at ‘call’ and savings in as dense the deposit earns ‘interest’. The companies not entitled to open savings account can open the call accounts. Interest rate on call deposit is negotiable between the bank and the depositors and hence, is normally not published in public. Interest rate is applied on daily average balance. Withdrawal restriction is not imposed on call deposit but the balance should not go below an agreed level (Dahal, and Dahal, 1990:30).

(iv) Recurring Deposit
Concept of recurring deposit was developed to encourage the thrift among people of fixed regular earning. In recurring deposit scheme, the depositor is required to deposit the fixed amount in each instalment and is repaid fixed amount at maturity.

b) Non-Interest Bearing Deposit
It is the deposit in which the banks need to pay interest for the customer of their savings. It is because in this types of deposit customers can withdraw the money at any time or can withdraw daily and the bank could not employ the amount in profitable projects that’s why it does not pay any interest in this type of account. Current and margin deposit are non interest bearing deposit.

(i) Current Deposit
The current deposit account generally opened by the business persons. They are allowed to withdraw and deposit the money according to their needs. There is no limitation of withdrawing the money. Therefore, these types of deposits are for those people who may need money at uncertain times.

(ii) Margin Deposit
Banks issue letter of credit, guarantee and indemnity etc. on behalf of the customer for a specified sum of money. These amounts have to be paid to the beneficiaries of aforesaid instruments provided they claim as per the terms and conditions agreed upon. Thus, banks are exposed to contingent liability. To reduce the liability banks ask customer to deposit a certain amount as the margin deposit.

Banks open the fictitious margin account in the name of the borrower to put such amount and interest is not paid in such deposit. Margin deposit is required to the customer if the case of claim, the amount is utilized to honor the claim. The customer is asked to cover the shortfall if any (Dahal, and Dahal, 1999:32).

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