Yes Bank: Chidambaram Links Crisis With Note Ban, Raises 5 Questions

New Delhi: Terming the backup plan of SBI investment to rescue the sinking ship of Yes Bank as bizarre, Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram said that SBI spending money to buy ‘worthless’ shares of Yes Bank is a bizarre idea. Linking the failure of Yes Bank with demonetisation, Chidambaram quoted figures showing that the loan book of Yes Bank grew the maximum just after demonetisation.

“Market is the best judge of any financial institution. Not any finance minister, not any newspaper. Yes Bank shares are now worthless. Instead of buying stake in Yes Bank, the State Bank of India can take over the loan book of Yes Bank and recover its dues as much as possible,” Chidambaram said.

“The loan book was allowed to grow 35 per cent a year despite RBI watch,” Chidambaram said adding, “Please note the spike which followed demonetisation.”

Five questions Chidambaram raised

1. Why the loan book was allowed to grow?
2. Who authorised the grant of new loans after 2014?
3. Didn’t RBI understand that Yes Bank was not banking anymore, it was buccaneering
4. Why did nothing change after a new CEO was appointed?
5. Did no one read the balance sheet of Yes Bank after every year? Why the alarm bell didn’t ring when Yes Bank reported the first quarterly loss in 2019?