Unity Small Finance Bank Limited, a joint venture between Centrum Group and Bharatpe, has commenced operations as a small finance bank with effect from Monday, according to an RBI release.

On October 12, the Reserve Bank gave the final licence to Unity Small Finance Bank, a consortium floated by Centrum Financial Services and Resilient Innovations, an arm of the digital lending platform Bharatpe, four months after giving it an in-principle nod to establish a small finance bank and then takeover the scam-ridden Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank, which was under direct RBI control since mid 2019.

In June, the Reserve Bank had given the in-principle approval for the 12th small finance bank licence to the consortium provided its takes over PMC, the city-based cooperative lender under restrictions for more than two years after a massive over Rs 7,000-crore fraud.

The Centrum group owns 51 per cent in Unity Small Finance Bank and the remaining equity is held by the Gurugram-based Bharatpe.

While giving the in-principle, the RBI said it has been accorded in specific pursuance to the Centrum Financial Services Limited's offer in February in response to the Expression of Interest published by the Punjab & Maharashtra Co-operative Bank Ltd, Mumbai.