IDFC First Bank hit by ₹590 crore fraud
IDFC First Bank has uncovered a ₹590 crore fraud at its Chandigarh branch, after a Haryana government department tried to close an account and found the numbers didn't add up.
The scam involved some bank employees working with outsiders, specifically targeting Haryana government accounts.
Other customers weren't affected, but the Haryana government has temporarily suspended all dealings with the bank during the investigation and has de-empanelled IDFC First Bank for government business in Haryana with immediate effect till further orders.
What is the bank doing?
The bank quickly filed a police complaint and suspended four staff members. KPMG is running a forensic audit to dig deeper into what went wrong.
CEO V Vaidyanathan said only certain accounts were hit and announced new security steps like app-based approvals and AI checks for big transactions.
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said the RBI was watching developments and there was "no systemic issue"—but investors reacted fast, sending shares down nearly 20%.