The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is considering a proposal to allow lenders to remotely lock the smartphones in case their owners default on EMIs (equated monthly instalments), RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said on October 1 in his post-MPC meet press briefing.

On being asked if the RBI will allow locking of phones bought on instalment in the event of loan default, the RBI chief said, “The matter is under consideration as we have arguments from both sides (consumers and lenders). These arguments are being looked at. Our main objective is to protect consumer rights and data privacy. Consumer rights are of paramount importance for us… At the same time, we will see how lenders interest can be safeguarded…”

‘Pros and cons on both sides in terms of balancing the customer rights’

Answering

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