SBI customer? 3 rules State Bank of India has changed you might not be aware of

We are into the New Year and a lot of things have already changed. Several WhatsApp users have lost support for the app on their devices, cars have got more expensive and we have a new deadline to link Aadhaar card with PAN Card - well, that last one isn't that new. For State Bank of India (SBI) customers too, several things have changed. SBI has implemented a few new rules in the New Year and chances are, since you may have been busy partying, you might have missed some of them. These include changes in its services like OTP-based ATM transactions, upgradation to EMV chip debit card, and reduction in its external benchmark based rate (EBR). So, lets see what has changed for SBI customers -

1. New EMV chip-based cards

The State Bank of India has been asking its customers to get their magnetic stripes ATM-cum-debit cards replaced with EMV chip debit cards. It had set a deadline of December 31, 2019 and had confirmed that old cards will get invalid from the mentioned date.

“Apply now to change your Magnetic Stripe Debit Cards to the more secure EMV Chip and PIN-based SBI Debit card at your home branch by 31st December 2019. Safeguard yourself with guaranteed authenticity, greater security for online payments and added security against fraud," SBI had tweeted.

So, if your old SBI debit card has stopped working, now you know why.

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2. OTP-based ATM transactions

The bank will allow its customers to withdraw more than Rs 10,000 from ATMs only after an OTP verification during 8 pm to 8 am from January 1, 2020. The OTP-based withdrawal is applicable only to withdrawals from SBI ATMs. When the customers will enter the withdrawal amount, the ATM screen will display an OTP field. The OTP received on the mobile number registered with the bank has to be entered here.

3. Low EBR

In a good news to its customers, the bank has recently reduced its external benchmark based rate (EBR) by 25 basis points to 7.80% per annum, from 8.05% per annum. The new rates also came into effect from January 1, 2020. The rate cut is applicable for both existing home loan customers as well as MSME borrowers who have availed loans linked to external benchmark based rate. SBI said new home buyers will get loans at an interest rate starting from 7.90% per annum, as compared to 8.15% earlier.