Nifty 50 fell 257 points, or 1.11%, to 22,888.95 on Monday, 19 October, as the biggest private banks showed thinner loan margins and banks asked the RBI for ₹1.51 lakh crore of one-week cash, with ₹1 lakh crore on offer.

The story so far: a week ago, Nifty fell on the rupee's best day since April. Today the rupee's six-day run of gains ended.



Nifty opened at 23,150.85 and closed 262 points lower. Private banks fell 1.85%, the worst of the day. Public sector banks rose 2.46%, the best.

Two of the largest private banks said their net interest margin fell 0.10 and 0.18 percentage points in July to September. On Friday, the one-day rate banks charge each other went above the RBI's 5.75% ceiling, a first this financial year.

A tea stall buys milk and sells tea. If milk costs more and tea does not, it sells as many cups but keeps less from each. For a bank, deposits are the milk and loans are the tea.



Nifty 50 22,888.95 (-1.11%), -12.4% this year → below where 2026 began.
Bank Nifty 55,488.10 (-0.64%) → public sector banks held it up.
Midcap 100 -1.09%, Smallcap 100 -1.01% → smaller companies fell as much.
Foreign funds sold ₹1,149 crore, Indian funds bought ₹3,201 crore → 2.8 times as much.
Rupee ₹94.92 per dollar, 3 paise weaker → first fall in seven days.
Brent $108.58 (-1.17%) → near its highest since May.
22K gold ₹1,34,108 per 10 g (IBJA morning, -₹18), before 3% GST and making charges.

One word: net interest margin (what a bank earns on loans minus what it pays on deposits, as a share of its loans).



Indian funds bought 2.8 times what foreign funds sold. Nifty still fell 1.11%.

Who buys is one half of the day. Which shares fall is the other. Banks carry the biggest weight in Nifty.

Of the 50 Nifty stocks, 41 closed below their 200-day average and 9 above.