New Delhi: In 2019, the government had announced the merger of 10 public sector banks into four banks. This was supposed to come into effect from the beginning of the 2020-21 financial year.

Here’s everything you need to know

1. There were 27 public sector banks in 2017. The number now will come down to 12 — six merged banks and six independent banks

2. Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India will be merged into Punjab National Bank.

3. Syndicate bank will be merged with Canara Bank.

4. Indian bank will be merged with Allahabad Bank.

5. Union Bank of India will be merged with Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank

6. Indian Overseas Bank, Uco Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Punjab and Sind Bank, Bank of India, Central Bank of India will remain the independent banks.

7. The customers of the 10 banks will be treated as the customers of the banks their banks got merged with.

8. Punjab National Bank will become the second-largest lender after the merger. The first is the State Bank of India.

9. Bank officers’ unions, however, earlier this week wrote to the prime minister seeking to defer the merger schemes of lenders due to the lockdown triggered by coronavirus outbreak. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday had clarified that the mega bank consolidation plan was very much on track.

10. The branches of the 10 banks will now work as the branches of the merged banks.