RBI to inject liquidity via ₹2 lakh crore OMO purchases, $10 billion forex swap

The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday, December 23, announced a series of measures to inject liquidity into the banking system, including large-scale open market operations and a dollar-rupee swap auction.

The central bank said it will conduct open market operation (OMO) purchase auctions of government securities for an aggregate amount of ₹2 lakh crore.

The OMO purchases will be carried out in four tranches of ₹50,000 crore each on December 29, 2025, January 5, 2026, January 12, 2026, and January 22, 2026.

The RBI will also conduct a USD/INR buy/sell swap auction of USD 10 billion with a tenor of three years on January 13, 2026, it said in a statement.

“Detailed instructions for each operation shall be issued separately,” the central bank added.

The announcement comes against the backdrop of tightening liquidity conditions in the banking system.

Liquidity turned deficit on December 17, 2025, despite continuous support from the central bank through variable rate repo (VRR) auctions, OMO purchases of government securities and USD/INR buy/sell swap auctions.

According to RBI data, banking system liquidity stood at a deficit of ₹60,787.81 crore as on December 17, the first deficit since October 28, 2025, when the shortfall was ₹8,083.79 crore. Liquidity had also turned deficit on March 28, 2025, at ₹9,354.09 crore.

During the December monetary policy, the RBI had already announced OMO purchase auctions of government securities worth ₹1 lakh crore in two tranches of ₹50,000 crore each, along with a USD/INR buy/sell swap auction of USD 5 billion for a three-year tenor.

The RBI said it will continue to closely monitor evolving liquidity and market conditions and take measures as appropriate to ensure orderly liquidity conditions in the financial system.