Since the initiation of structural reforms in the Indian banking sector in 1991, the reach and business volumes of Indian banks have increased many fold; the operations have grown and  BIS central bankers’ speeches  5  assumed higher degree of sophistication. The Indian banks’ current capital base and liquidity position are broadly comfortable, as a starting point, vis-a-vis the Basel III guidelines.
Both the capital to risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR) and the core CRAR of Indian banks, respectively stood at 10.42 per cent and 9.24 per cent respectively as on March 31, 1997 and have consistently remained well above the regulatory requirement of 9 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively under Basel II.