The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday announced a record dividend payout of Rs 2.87 lakh crore to the government for FY26, providing additional fiscal space amid evolving global and geopolitical challenges, PTI reported. The decision on the surplus transfer was taken at the 623rd meeting of the RBI Central Board of Directors chaired by Governor Sanjay Malhotra. The latest transfer is higher than the Rs 2.69 lakh crore dividend paid for FY25 and marks another increase after the central bank transferred Rs 2.1 lakh crore for FY24 and Rs 87,416 crore for FY23. “The net income, before risk provision and transfer to statutory funds, aggregated Rs 3,95,972.10 crore in FY 2025-26 as against Rs 3,13,455.77 crore in FY 2024-25,” RBI said in a statement. The central bank’s balance sheet also expanded during the year. According to RBI, the balance sheet grew 20.61 per cent to Rs 91,97,121.08 crore as of March 31, 2026
