The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has slapped penalties totalling Rs 2.49 crore on three banks for various non-compliances.

The banks fined are Dhanlaxmi Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank and ESAF Small Finance Bank. 

A penalty of Rs 1.20 crore has been slapped on private lender Dhanlaxmi Bank for non-compliance with certain directions on 'Loans and Advances — Statutory and Other Restrictions', KYC and certain norms related to interest rate on deposits, the RBI on Friday said.

Further, a fine of Rs 1 crore has been imposed on state-owned Punjab and Sind Bank for non-compliance with certain directions on 'Loans and Advances — Statutory and Other Restrictions'.

The central bank has also imposed a penalty of Rs 29.55 lakh on ESAF Small Finance Bank for non-compliance with the directions issued by it on 'Customer Service in Banks'.

The penalties are based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and are not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the lenders with their customers, according to three separate statements issued by the RBI.

Earlier on 11 January, the RBI decided to waive the Rs 5 crore penalty on Bank of Baroda. The state-owned lender was previously fined due to a shortfall in soiled note remittances.