Key Point of the Operation
- The RBI has formally announced that the first stage of G-SAP 1.0 operations will begin on April 15, 2021.
- The first step will be the acquisition of five dated securities for a total of Rs 25,000 crore.
- The multiple pricing technique will be used for the first stage of the G-SAP acquisition, and bidders will pay at the rates they submitted in their bids.
- Four securities with various maturities have been notified by the RBI for the G-Sec acquisition.
- Along with implementing the G-SAP strategy, the RBI will carry on with routine activities.
- The LAF, longer-term repo/reverse repo auctions, currency operations, and open market operations, including special OMOs, would fall under this.
- This is done to make sure that the evolution of the liquidity conditions is consistent with the direction of monetary policy.
Government Securities Acquisition Program (G-SAP)
The Government Securities Acquisition Program (G-SAP) is essentially a much bigger and more unconditional Open Market Operation (OMO). The G-SAP is an OMO with a “unique character,” as per RBI. The term “unconditional” in this context means that RBI has promised up front that it will purchase G-Securities regardless of the state of the market. A marketable instrument known as Government Security (G-Sec) is one that the federal or state governments have issued. It acknowledges the financial responsibilities of the government. The government securities will be bought by the RBI through a multi-security auction using the multiple-price approach. It will make five different types of government securities purchases through a multi-security auction with various price methodologies. The Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF), OMOs, and Operation Twist will continue to operate as usual with G-SAP, and the program is integrated into the central bank’s overall liquidity planning framework for 2021–2022. The government can borrow money by using G-Secs, which are instruments of government-issued debt. The RBI has announced that as part of the G-sec Acquisition Program, it will buy government securities on the open market for Rs. 25,000 crores in August 2022 (G-SAP 2.0), which is why it has recently made headlines.