The RBI's Special Mention Account categories — early-stage stress bands that sit between a standard account and a non-performing asset, defined by how many days a payment has been overdue.
The bands
For loans other than revolving facilities, classification runs on days overdue of principal or interest:
| Category | Days overdue |
|---|---|
| SMA-0 | 1 to 30 days |
| SMA-1 | 31 to 60 days |
| SMA-2 | 61 to 90 days |
Beyond 90 days the account becomes a non-performing asset and leaves the SMA ladder.
For revolving facilities such as cash credit and overdraft, classification runs on the account being continuously out of order rather than on a scheduled payment: SMA-1 at 31 to 60 days and SMA-2 at 61 to 90 days.
These bands are set out in the RBI’s Prudential Framework for Resolution of Stressed Assets of 7 June 2019.
Why the category exists
The point of SMA is to make deterioration visible before it becomes a default. A single lender sees only its own account; the framework requires the classification to be reported centrally so that stress at one lender is visible to the others exposed to the same borrower.
Where it is reported
SMA status on a borrower is reported to the RBI’s CRILC — the Central Repository of Information on Large Credits — for borrowers with aggregate exposure of ₹5 crore and above. Alongside the monthly CRILC-Main return, lenders also submit a weekly report of instances of default by such borrowers, due by close of business every Friday, or the preceding working day where Friday is a holiday.
A common misconception is that the weekly return concerns SMA-2 accounts. That was the pre-2018 regime. The current requirement is a weekly report of instances of default.
What it is not
SMA classification is supervisory reporting data, not public disclosure. It does not appear in a rating press release, and there is no public SMA lookup. Who may access CRILC data →
Related
- Large exposures framework — the other RBI framework behind the reporting trigger
- Multiple banking — the visibility gap SMA reporting is designed to close
- Bank loan rating — the public rating that does not carry SMA status
- What CRILC is — the repository SMA status is reported into
- Glossary index