Speaking at Global Fintech Fest 2026, Setty said banks would put the money to work carefully instead of rushing through deployment within a month. On September 8, 2026, surplus liquidity across India's banking system stood at around ₹10.50 lakh crore.

The inflows followed an RBI swap facility through which banks mobilised $127.23 billion in overseas deposits between June and August. Banks exchanged those dollars with the RBI for rupees, adding to domestic liquidity. FCNR(B) accounts are foreign-currency term deposits held by NRIs.

At SBI, surplus holdings of Statutory Liquidity Ratio securities increased to ₹4 lakh crore following the foreign-currency inflows, compared with ₹3.06 lakh crore on June 30. Managing Director Ashwini Kumar Tewari said SBI's lending pipeline exceeded ₹9 lakh crore, covering sanctioned loans awaiting disbursement, credit limits not yet drawn and fresh applications.

Funding costs make prolonged parking expensive. Bank of Baroda Chief Economist Madan Sabnavis said banks had offered 6.00%-6.50% on these foreign deposits, while surplus money parked with the RBI was earning 5.24%. He highlighted the need for higher-yielding lending. Upcoming GST and advance-tax payments could absorb some surplus, helping the RBI assess whether more liquidity-management measures are needed.