India's central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said that it will release the final rules for obtaining new bank licenses within this financial year before 31 March, 2013.

The new rules are expected to allow firms in other sectors to enter the tightly regulated banking sector of Asia's third largest economy. The banking sector in the country has been traditionally dominated by the state-run banks with private banks like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank Ltd as well as some foreign banks making in roads and consolidating their positions in the market.

India's banking sector is highly regulator to protect people's savings and to ensure the stability of the financial system in the country. However, the authorities are now looking at financial inclusion as a significant proportion of the Indian citizens do not have a bank account. The government is not aiming to expand the distribution of financial services in the country by allowing new banks to enter the Indian banking sector.

Anand Sinha, a deputy governor with the central bank has said that the central bank has completed its consultations with the finance ministry and the RBI will release the rules within this financial year.