Inside India’s Unclaimed Deposits Surge: When Dormant Money Tells a Bigger Story

The Numbers That Should Worry Us

In the last decade, the amount of unclaimed deposits in Indian banks has exploded, rising from ₹2,795 crore in 2014 to ₹97,545 crore by March 2025. That’s a massive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 38% over 11 years. But the real kicker? More than half—52%—of this growth happened in just the most recent three years.

Year	Unclaimed Deposits (₹ Crore)	Growth Highlight
2014	2,795	Fund inception (DEA Fund)
2025	97,545	Over 50% added in last 3 years

The truly dramatic phase kicked off after the pandemic, outpacing all prior years and setting off alarm bells for depositors, regulators, and families.

Why Are So Many Deposits Left Unclaimed?

• Awareness Gaps: Families often don’t know about deposits left by relatives, especially after the owner passes away.

• Data Fragmentation: Account and nominee details are scattered or lost, especially with old accounts or where paperwork was physical.

• Cumbersome Claims: Exhaustive KYC requirements, nominee verification, and paper-heavy processes discourage claims.

• Outdated Communication: Banks and the RBI have relied on digital and notice-based communication, often missing senior citizens and rural families.

What Has the RBI Done—and Why Isn’t It Enough?

Recent years have seen several earnest interventions:

1. UDGAM Portal (April 2023)

Aimed to unify unclaimed deposit discovery across banks, the UDGAM portal covers ~90% of such accounts.

2. ‘100 Days 100 Pays’ and Eased KYC Norms

Special campaigns and fresh KYC rules have made it easier to reactivate dormant accounts and claim deposits, including at non-home branches and via video KYC.

3. Persistent Gaps

Despite these, only about 10% of the unclaimed corpus has been returned to depositors or heirs as of March 2024. The rest continues to pile up, much of it “hidden in plain sight.”

How Do Families Fall Through the Cracks?

1. Forgotten FDs & Passbooks: Fixed deposits or old savings accounts, once ignored, become almost invisible.

2. No Nominees, No Access: Lack or poor updating of nominee details ties up legitimate inheritance.

3. Complex Paper Trails: The more hoops to jump through, the more likely a claim slips through the cracks entirely.

What’s the Real Fix? Beyond Portals & Reports

Experts now call for:

• Annual, dedicated reports on unclaimed deposit trends and the DEA Fund’s impact.

• A clearer, more aggressive outreach, especially in rural and senior-citizen populations.

• Best-practice digital tools for families to record, update, and retrieve all financial assets—not just bank accounts—holistically.

Where Does KustodianLife Fit In?

Kustodian isn’t pretending to “solve” the ₹1 lakh crore problem, but serves as a critical nudge:

• Asset Mapping: Helping families consolidate a record of potential and known financial assets—bank accounts, insurance, FDs, and more.

• Legacy Tools: Promotes habits like regular nominee updates, digital will creation, and clear asset documentation.

• Guided Claims: Walking families through the actual process when a claim must be made, demystifying what’s often a daunting hurdle.

Final Word

The exponential jump in unclaimed deposits—especially the blinding speed in just three years—is a call to action. Family-by-family, India must move from scattered memories and lost paperwork to informed, organized asset management. Until systemic transparency meets personal action, this mountain of dormant money will only keep growing.

Behind every rupee unclaimed is a story of intent, family, and planning—let’s ensure it doesn’t end as a silent statistic.

This article draws on data and findings published in July 2025 and reinforces the continued urgency for both policy and personal interventions in India’s financial legacy crisis.

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