Why did the bank fraud amount rise in FY25 even though cases fell?

The amount involved jumped mainly because of reclassification, not a fresh wave of large frauds. RBI has noted that about Rs 18,674 crore across 122 older cases -- previously de-classified -- was reported afresh in FY25 after re-examination, following the Supreme Court judgment of 27 March 2023 requiring banks to give borrowers a hearing before classifying an account as fraud. Strip that out and the underlying FY25 amount is far smaller. This is why the headline 'amount tripled' can mislead: case counts (down ~34%) and amount (up ~3x) moved in opposite directions.

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India bank frauds — cases and amount involved

Q: How many bank fraud cases were reported in India in FY25?

Banks in India reported about 23,953 fraud cases in FY25 (2024-25), down roughly 34% from the 36,075 cases reported in FY24, according to RBI Annual Report data. Even though the number of cases fell, the total amount involved nearly tripled to about Rs 36,014 crore. These are frauds reported by banks; the year a fraud is reported can differ from the year it actually occurred, and the figures are rounded, approximate and revised.

Q: Why did the number of bank frauds explode in FY24?

The ~166% jump in FY24 case counts (to 36,075) was driven overwhelmingly by small-value frauds in the digital payments space -- card, internet and online payment frauds -- which are large in number but small in rupee value. That is why FY24 set a record for the NUMBER of cases while the total AMOUNT involved actually fell about 47% to roughly Rs 13,930 crore. The pattern marks a structural shift from a few very large corporate-loan frauds toward many small retail digital frauds.

Q: Which banks report the most fraud -- public or private?

By NUMBER of cases, private-sector banks reported the most in FY25 -- about 14,233 cases, roughly 59% of the total -- reflecting their larger card and digital footprint. By AMOUNT, public-sector banks dominated, accounting for about Rs 25,667 crore (around 71% of the total), versus about Rs 10,088 crore at private banks, because the larger-value loan-related frauds sit mainly with public-sector lenders. So private banks lead on count and public-sector banks on value.

Quick answerFrauds reported by banks in India (RBI Annual Report) tell two different stories at once. The number of cases exploded about 166% to 36,075 in FY24, driven by small-value digital, card and online payment frauds, then fell about 34% to 23,953 in FY25. But the amount involved moved the other way: it fell to roughly Rs 13,930 crore in FY24, then nearly tripled to about Rs 36,014 crore in FY25 — largely a reclassification effect (about Rs 18,674 crore of older cases re-reported), not a fresh wave of mega-frauds. The lesson: read count and amount together. Figures are official, rounded, approximate and revised periodically.

The bars show the number of fraud cases (left axis); the line shows the amount involved in Rs crore (right axis). The two diverge — many small cases vs a few large amounts. The table below carries the same figures so the page is readable without JavaScript — for accessibility and AI answer engines.

Frauds reported by banks — cases and amount (Rs crore)

Fiscal year	Cases	Amount (Rs cr)	Note
FY22	9,100	~59,800	Amount roughly halved vs FY21 as legacy large-value cases worked through
FY23	13,560	~26,100	Cases up, amount down further -- shift toward smaller-value frauds
FY24	36,075	~13,930	Cases jump ~166% on small-value digital / card / online payment frauds; amount falls ~47%
FY25	23,953	~36,014	Cases down ~34%, but amount nearly triples -- largely reclassification of older cases

Metric: frauds reported by banks during the fiscal year, as compiled in the RBI Annual Report — number of cases and total amount involved (Rs crore). The reporting year can differ from the year the fraud occurred. All figures are rounded and approximate; recent years are provisional and revised. The FY25 amount includes about Rs 18,674 crore of older cases re-reported after re-classification. For exact latest figures see the source linked below.

What it means for bankers

Bank-fraud data only makes sense when you read count and value together. The surge in case counts is a digital-payments story: as card, internet and UPI-adjacent transactions scaled, so did small-value fraud attempts — high volume, low rupee value, and increasingly an operational-risk and customer-protection problem rather than a balance-sheet one. The amount involved, by contrast, is dominated by a handful of large loan-related frauds that mostly sit with public-sector banks, which is why public-sector lenders account for the majority of the rupee amount while private banks report the majority of cases. The FY25 spike in amount is a reminder to look past headlines: it reflects older cases being re-reported after the Supreme Court required banks to give borrowers a hearing before a fraud tag, not a sudden deterioration. For supervisors this links to the RBI’s supervision and enforcement work and the Master Direction on Fraud Risk Management; for banks it underlines investment in transaction-monitoring and early-warning systems.

Key terms in this dataPlain-English definitions of the terms behind this dashboard — see the full Indian banking glossary. Non-performing asset (NPA) · Scheduled commercial bank

More live dataExplore BankPulse’s other live RBI dashboards: NPA / Asset Quality · RBI Penalty Tracker · Bank Health Scores · UPI / Digital Payments.

India bank fraud FAQ

How many bank fraud cases were reported in India in FY25?

Banks reported about 23,953 fraud cases in FY25 (2024-25), down ~34% from 36,075 in FY24 (RBI Annual Report). Yet the total amount involved nearly tripled to about Rs 36,014 crore. These are frauds reported by banks; the reporting year can differ from when the fraud occurred, and figures are rounded, approximate and revised.

Why did the fraud amount rise in FY25 even though cases fell?

Mostly reclassification, not new mega-frauds. About Rs 18,674 crore across 122 older cases was re-reported afresh in FY25 after re-examination, following the Supreme Court's 27 March 2023 ruling that borrowers must be heard before an account is classed as fraud. Excluding that, the underlying FY25 amount is far smaller -- so the 'amount tripled' headline can mislead.

Why did the number of bank frauds explode in FY24?

The ~166% jump (to 36,075) came almost entirely from small-value digital, card and online payment frauds -- many in number but small in value. That is why FY24 set a record for case COUNT while the total AMOUNT fell ~47% to about Rs 13,930 crore: a shift from a few large corporate-loan frauds to many small retail digital ones.

Which banks report the most fraud -- public or private?

By number of cases, private-sector banks led in FY25 (~14,233 cases, ~59%), reflecting their card and digital footprint. By amount, public-sector banks dominated (~Rs 25,667 crore, ~71%) versus ~Rs 10,088 crore at private banks, since larger loan-related frauds sit mainly with public-sector lenders.

Methodology & sources: see how BankPulse dashboards are sourced, verified & updated · machine-readable bank-fraud JSON feed.

Last reviewed 19 Jun 2026 by Vikram Jain

Source: RBI — Annual Report data on frauds reported by banks (number of cases and amount involved), rbi.org.in. The reporting year can differ from the year a fraud occurred; figures are rounded and approximate and recent years are provisional and revised. The FY25 amount includes about Rs 18,674 crore of older cases re-reported after re-classification. We never reproduce source text verbatim. Reviewed by Vikram Jain. Last updated 19 Jun 2026, 05:39 IST.