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KUMBAKONAM
MUTUAL BENEFIT FUND NIDHI LTD

Corporate Governance

Fair Practice Code

Preamble / Introduction

The Fair Practice Code (FPC) has been formulated by KMBF Nidhi Ltd (the Company) with a view to institute fairness and healthy practice of the business of the Company and thereby creating cordial relationship between the Company and members-shareholders and to foster confidence in the investment service system.

The FPC will be applicable to all the offices of the Company including the Central Office Branches located across Tamil Nadu & Karaikkal. The FPC shall be binding on all the Employees of the Company In this code, the word members-shareholders shall also mean share holder/member of the Company and vice-versa.

Objectives

  • Adopt the best practices in dealings with members-shareholders.
  • Set challenging benchmarks and strives to achieve high operating standards for ensuring members-shareholders satisfaction.
  • Follow transparent, fair, ethical and legally tenable practices while conducting business.
  • Provide all necessary information and inputs to members-shareholders / prospective members-shareholders and promote a mutually beneficial long term relationship.
  • Facilitate a continuously growing base of satisfied members-shareholders while scrupulously avoiding acquisition of members-shareholders having doubtful credentials.

Declaration & Commitments

  • The Company undertakes to abide by all applicable laws, regulations and guidelines passed / issued by the Regulators and other competent authorities.
  • The Company commits itself to full members-shareholders satisfaction through efficient. professional and courteous services across all its offices.
  • The Company shall consistently strive to meet with and improve upon the internally set benchmarks and practices and be ahead of the standards prevalent in the industry.
  • The Company undertakes not to discriminate members-shareholders on grounds of religion, caste, gender or language.
  • The Company will provide clear and full information about its products and services to its members-shareholders / prospective members-shareholders and will not resort to any misleading or potentially misguiding advertisement or publicity.
  • The Company undertakes to desist from introducing any products / services having elements of hidden charges or lack of transparency.
  • The Company will communicate in the local language with the members-shareholders and in English at the request of the members-shareholders.
  • The Company undertakes to take all possible and reasonable measures to secure the safe custody of the security pledged by the members-shareholders and to compensate the members-shareholders for any accidental, inadvertent or fraudulent loss of the security whilst in the custody of the Company.
  • The Company undertakes not to take advantage of any unintentional or clerical error made by the members-shareholders while transacting business.
  • The Company is committed to put in place a system for promptly addressing complaints and suggestions of the members-shareholders supplemented with a structured Grievance Redressal Mechanism having an escalation matrix.

Fair Practices

Loans, Terms & Conditions, Interest Rate & Charges

  • The Company shall make available loan application forms to all prospective members-shareholders free of cost at the concemed branches. An acknowledgement for receipt of duly completed loan application forms will be given to the members-shareholders in all cases. As a matter of policy and members-shareholders service loan applications are sanctioned / rejected immediately Disbursement of the loan and acceptance of security will be carried out nearly simultaneously.
  • The Company shall disclose all relevant information relating to a loan / product such as eligible loan amount, interest rate, charges, penal/overdue interest, interest calculation methodology etc. before sanction of the loan to enable the members-shareholders/ prospective members-shareholders to take an informed decision. The members-shareholders / prospective members-shareholders will also be provided, on request, the detailed terms and conditions of the loan before sanction.
  • The Company shall not in the normal course make any changes / modifications in the terms and Conditions of the loan, including rate of interest, which could adversely affect the members-shareholders financially or otherwise. In abnormal circumstances when such changes/modifications are inevitable, keeping in view the new circumstances. adequate and proper notice shall be given to the members-shareholders about any such change/modification.

Marketing & Promotion

  • The Company shall make available loan application forms to all prospective members-shareholders free of cost at the concerned branches mentioning also the supporting documents to be submitted along with. An acknowledgement for receipt of duly completed loan application forms will be given to the members-shareholders in all cases. As a matter of policy and members-shareholders service loan applications are sanctioned / rejected immediately. Disbursement of the loan and acceptance of security will be carried out nearly simultaneously.
  • The Company shall not in the normal course make any changes / modifications in the terms and conditions of the loan, including rate of interest, which could adversely affect the members-shareholders financially or otherwise. In abnormal circumstances when such changes/modifications are inevitable, keeping in view the new circumstances, adequate and proper notice shall be given to the members-shareholders about any such change/modification.

Recovery of Dues, Excercise of Lien & Delivery of Security

  • The Company will not, as a matter of fair dealing, normally recall the loan before the initially agreed tenure except in unanticipated or abnormal circumstances where the Company interests are adversely affected e.g. when the security value diminishes substantially, when the quality of security is not found to be acceptable, due to any regulatory government directives etc. In all such cases proper and reasonable notice shall be given to the members-shareholders recalling the loan before expiry of the normal tenure.
  • The Company will make all possible soft or persuasive efforts to get the members-shareholders to repay the dues without resorting to disposal of the security. The Company does not accept nor will it encourage the use any coercive or hard measures to recover its dues from the members-shareholders.
  • The Company will deliver the security to the members-shareholders immediately upon settlement of the loan in the same condition as was at the time of sanction of the loan. If the security has signs of damage thereon, before being taken custody of by the Company at the time of sanction of loan, the fact will be briefly incorporated in the sanction letter.
  • The Company shall issue a signed and, normally, a system generated receipt for all cash payments made by the members-shareholders immediately. The Company shall also accept payments vide cheques, demand drafts, etc. subject to the condition that the said account will be closed only after confirmation of realization.
  • The Company will resort to auction the security only as a last resort and that too after adequate and proper notice is served on the members-shareholders to repay the dues and also after direct contact Such notice will be as per the terms contained in the sanction letter and also in compliance with applicable laws and regulatory guidelines. The disposal of the security will be taken up through public auction when the members-shareholders does not positively respond to the communications sent by the Company to close the loan account along with interest and other charges like notice fees.
  • Where the Company proposes to dispose of the security even before the normal tenure of the loan based on the rights conferred on the Company vide loan application and loan sanction letter adequate and proper notice will be served on the members-shareholders before such action is initiated for recovery of dues.
  • The Company prefers and encourages members-shareholderss to take back delivery of the security immediately upon full settlement of all dues. However, should there be exceptional instance of the members-shareholders being unable to take delivery of the security, not attributable to the inability of the Company, after closure of the loan account reasonable safe custody charges may be payable which will be duly advised to the members-shareholders.
  • The Company will not interfere in the affairs of the members-shareholders except for the purposes mentioned in the terms & conditions of the loan or when constrained to do so due to inadequate or false disclosures made by the borrower at the time of putting through the transactions.

Customer Service & Grievance Redressal

  • The Company will implement all possible steps to prevent and minimize members-shareholders complaints/grievances.
  • The Company will facilitate the members-shareholders to pay the whole or part of the dues at any of the branches of the Company subject to the condition that delivery of the pledged security shall be made only at the branch where loan was originally disbursed.
  • The Company will put in place an effective members-shareholders Grievance Redressal mechanism detail of which will be displayed on the website.
  • The Company will put in place an effective training system to ensure that employees of the Company are members-shareholders friendly and do not resort to rude, inappropriate or unethical behavior.
  • The Company will endeavor to work out and display the time norms for putting through and completing the various transactions.