CALCUTTA, July 1: Hire purchase and leasing companies have protested against the Reserve Bank of India's decision to club them with investment and deposit-taking non-banking finance companies (NBFCs). The Hire Purchase & Lease Association (HPLA) said today that banks and term-lending institutions were giving its members the "untouchable" status.The HPLA said the RBI should differentiate between the various types of NBFCs based on their activities. "We do not take deposits from the public," said a member of the HPLA. "Lease and hire purchase has been a proven method of asset financing in the country for over decades. They should be treated as intermediaries in the financial system of the country just as a retailer is in the manufacturing sector," a member said.The present method of policing of NBFCs does not differentiate between a company that takes deposit and one that is financed by banks.
