August 14, 2025

Mumbai is gearing up for a big leap in banking speed as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gets ready to launch a faster cheque clearing system! Say goodbye to the long wait of up to two working days for your cheque to clear. From October 4, 2025, the RBI will introduce a game-changing method where cheques will be scanned, presented, and cleared within just hours — all during business hours. Currently, the Cheque Truncation System (CTS) takes up to two days to process cheques in batches. But the new plan is to switch to "continuous clearing" which means cheques will be processed round-the-clock in a single session from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. As the RBI circular explains, banks will scan and send cheques immediately and continuously during this time. What happens next? The drawee bank (the bank on which the cheque is drawn) will give a quick "positive confirmation" if the cheque is honored, or a "negative confirmation" if it’s bounced. In the first phase starting October 4, 2025, drawee banks must confirm the cheque status by 7:00 PM the same day — or the cheque will be counted as approved automatically! Phase two kicks off on January 3, 2026, bringing in an even faster schedule. Cheques received between 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM must now be confirmed by 2:00 PM — just 3 hours after the last cheque’s arrival! And if no confirmation arrives, the cheque automatically clears by 2:00 PM. Once the clearing house finishes settlement, it will send all confirmation info back to the presenting bank, which must pay the customer instantly, and no later than one hour after settlement — but with usual safety checks to keep things secure. The RBI emphasizes that banks should prepare well for this big change, and clearly inform their customers about the new speedy cheque clearing process. This upgrade promises to reduce settlement risks, improve efficiency, and give customers a lightning-fast banking experience. Are you ready for your cheques to clear in hours rather than days? The countdown begins now!

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Tags: Rbi, Cheque clearing, Continuous clearing and settlement, Cheque truncation system, Banking, Payment system,