A big stink on the brink

摘要

Imagine a central bank tweeting that, yes, there are rumours of "certain" banks facing deposit runs but "there is no need to panic". Would you feel reassured? That is the unenviable position Indians found themselves in last week as a financial storm rumbled on in the world's fifth-biggest economy with no sign of the authorities getting a firm grip. In the latest fiasco a co-operative bank, pmc, is accused of fraud, prompting depositors to yank their cash out. Meanwhile shares in Yes Bank, a private lender, have collapsed by 40% in the past month as rumours swirl. These are not isolated incidents. Roughly a third of the financial system is on crutches or under suspicion. Dazed by the scale of the task, the government and the Reserve Bank of India (rbi) are dithering. Until they act, India's economy will not perk up—and there is a danger of a full-blown crisis.