Are Banks Safer Online Now? The Real Reason Behind Indian Banks Adopting .bank.in Domain

Banks across India are quietly switching their website addresses to a new, more secure zone. But what pushed them to make this sudden digital move?

Ever opened a bank website and felt unsure if it was the real one? Many people had that moment this year, and the doubt grew stronger as banks changed their website names almost at the same time.

Indian Banks Move Toward a New Digital Identity

The big shift began after a Times of India report in October 2025 said that more than 200 banks were preparing to move to the new .bank.in domain. It sounded sudden, but the move had been brewing for a while. Changes to Indian bank website domains started picking up pace once banks saw how many fake websites were tricking customers.

Fraud cases fell to 23,953 in Financial Year 2025, but the loss touched ₹36,014 crore, according to a Business Standard report in November 2025. Strange pattern. Fewer cases, bigger loss. That’s how it goes sometimes.

Before moving ahead, a quick look at how different banks stand in this shift.
 

Feels uneven, but that is how large updates spread in India.

Why Does the .bank.in Domain Exist at All?

Many people asked what the new address even stands for. The .bank.in domain is a controlled space on the internet. Only banks cleared by the Reserve Bank of India can use it.  This directly ties into the reason behind Indian banks adopting the .bank.in domain, to create an online space where customers instantly know they’re on an authentic banking website,not a fake lookalike.

The reason behind the .bank.in migration was simple. Real and fake websites began looking too alike. The new zone helps solve that. It also improves the security purpose of new banking URLs.

A LoansJagat article from August 2025 highlighted how Punjab National Bank became one of the first movers, backed by its massive physical presence:
 

With a network this large, early adoption became logical.

There was confusion earlier. A 2025 PIB fact-check explained that not every bank had been ordered to shift at once. 

Many customers thought the rule was already active. The update helped clear that cloud. This older news now feels connected to the present work happening across banks.

How The Government And Banks Have Responded Over Time?

Whenever scams rise, phishing, UPI frauds, and fake loan apps, the government updates its guidelines, and banks adopt them over months. This time is no different. The transition to .bank.in may look small, but it’s a significant move in India’s online banking safety cycle.

In fact, the reason behind Indian banks adopting the .bank.in domain is rooted in this same pattern: each wave of cybercrime pushes the sector toward stronger digital boundaries.

Conclusion

The shift to .bank.in comes amid heightened online risk. The change looks small, but it helps people know they are entering the right site. And in a country with so many digital users, even a small boundary can save trouble.

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LoansJagat Team

‘Simplify Finance for Everyone.’ This is the common goal of our team, as we try to explain any topic with relatable examples. From personal to business finance, managing EMIs to becoming debt-free, we do extensive research on each and every parameter, so you don’t have to. Scroll up and have a look at what 15+ years of experience in the BFSI sector looks like.