Indian Overseas Bank: Branch Management Syllabus

IOB Manager (Branch Management) 2026-27

• Manager – Branch Management | MMGS Scale II
• Strategy & Syllabus · Exam Pattern · Eligibility · 13 Priority Areas · English Strategy
• 100 Questions · 100 Marks · 120 Minutes · 100 Vacancies

Recruitment Details: 

Particular	Details
Post	Manager – Branch Management
Grade	MMGS Scale II
Vacancies	100 (SC 15 · ST 7 · OBC 27 · EWS 10 · UR 41)
Age as on 01.08.2026	23–33 years, with the usual category relaxations
Qualification	Graduation in any discipline from a recognised university
Experience	3 years as an officer in a scheduled bank, including at least 2 years in branch banking
Online Registration	29.08.2026 to 15.09.2026
Application Fee	₹1,000 for General candidates / ₹175 for SC, ST and PWBD candidates

What You Are Hired As

• Probation of 6 months.
• Posted as Branch Head on completion of probation.
• Posting anywhere in India.

Pay & Bond

• Scale: ₹64,820 – ₹93,960.
• DA, HRA and CCA as per rules.
• Indemnity bond of ₹2.5 lakh with 3 years' service.

Important: Only Post Code 01 is a Generalist Officer post. Every other post in this advertisement is a specialist one.

Exam Pattern: Generalist Officer, Scale II

Section	Questions	Marks	Duration
English Language	25	25	30 minutes
Professional Knowledge	75	75	90 minutes
Total	100	100	120 minutes

Medium: English for the English section; English and Hindi for Professional Knowledge.

The Merit Section

Professional Knowledge carries 75 of the 100 marks.

Minimum qualifying marks: 35% for unreserved candidates and 30% for reserved candidates.

The English Section

No minimum qualifying marks are prescribed, but every mark still counts towards the total.

Examination Centres

Delhi / NCR · Mumbai / MMR · Chennai · Kolkata · Hyderabad · Bengaluru

Negative Marking

One-fourth mark is deducted for every wrong answer.

Separate timing applies to each section. You cannot carry unused English time into Professional Knowledge.

Selection Process

1. Online Examination: 100 objective questions, 100 marks and 2 hours with sectional timing. Candidates must clear the Professional Knowledge cut-off to move ahead.
2. Interview: 100 marks, assessed on role-related industry exposure, subject knowledge and communication. Minimum qualifying marks are 50% for unreserved candidates and 45% for reserved candidates.
3. Final Merit List: 80% weightage to the online examination and 20% to the interview. Shortlisting for the examination itself is based on qualification, experience and profile.

Component	Final Weightage
Online Examination	80%
Interview	20%

Important: Merely meeting the eligibility norms does not entitle a candidate to a call. The Bank shortlists candidates on profile before the exam.

What This Pattern Means for Your Preparation

1. Professional Knowledge: The 13 priority areas carry 75 of 100 marks.
2. Current Banking Updates: RBI circulars, policy rates and scheme changes.
3. Practice MCQs: Focus on case-based and situation-based questions.
4. English Language: 25 marks — accuracy, not heroics.

Suggested Time Allocation

Area	Suggested Preparation Time
Professional Knowledge	70–75%
Latest Banking and RBI Updates	10–15%
English Language	10–15%

Preparation warning: Chasing hard puzzles while neglecting RBI, credit and NPA norms is the wrong direction for this paper.

The Four Professional Knowledge Subjects

Banking Law & Practice

• Banking Laws
• Recovery of Loans
• KYC, AML and Compliance

Principles & Practices of Banking

• Credit and Advances
• Deposits and Customer Service
• Trade Finance and Forex

Indian Economy & Financial System

• RBI Circulars and Updates
• Priority Sector Lending
• MSME Banking
• Government Schemes
• Banking and Financial Awareness

Accounting & Financial Management

• Credit Appraisal and Ratios
• IRAC, SMA and NPA
• Basel and Risk Management

The 13 priority areas below map onto these four subjects. Study by area and revise by subject.

Professional Knowledge: 13 Priority Areas

These 13 areas form the core of the Professional Knowledge section, which carries 75 of the 100 marks.

Priority 1: Credit and Advances

Your Strongest Area

IOB requires 3 years as an officer in a scheduled bank, of which 2 years must be in branch banking. Expect practical lending questions, not textbook theory.

Credit Basics

• Types of bank credit.
• Fund-based and non-fund-based facilities.
• Cash Credit, Overdraft and Term Loans.
• Working Capital, Drawing Power and Margin.
• Primary and collateral security.
• Pledge, Hypothecation and Mortgage.
• Assignment, Lien and Set-off.

Credit Appraisal

• Assessment of working capital and operating cycle.
• MPBF and Tandon Committee concepts.
• Turnover method and Projected Balance Sheet method.
• Cash-flow assessment.
• Debt-equity ratio, Current ratio and DSCR.
• Interest Coverage Ratio and TOL/TNW.
• Financial leverage and break-even analysis.

Exam tip: Do not just memorise formulas. Practise numericals where the ratios must also be interpreted.

Priority 2: IRAC, SMA and NPA

High-Yield Area

Classification

• SMA-0, SMA-1 and SMA-2.
• NPA classification.
• Sub-standard assets.
• Doubtful assets.
• Loss assets.
• Upgradation of NPA accounts.

Income & Provisioning

• Income recognition.
• Reversal of unrealised interest.
• Provisioning.
• Restructuring.
• Resolution of stressed assets.

Stressed Accounts

• Wilful defaulters.
• Fraud accounts.
• Prudential Framework for Resolution of Stressed Assets.
• Situation-based classification questions.

Exam tip: Do not prepare IRAC as definitions alone. Practise case-based questions.

Priority 3: RBI Circulars and Regulatory Updates

The Deciding Area

Focus Particularly On

• Latest RBI Monetary Policy, Repo Rate and the policy framework.
• KYC Master Direction.
• Priority Sector Lending and IRAC norms.
• Large Exposure Framework.
• Loans and Advances regulations.
• Digital lending.
• Fraud risk management and customer service.
• Penal charges and credit information reporting.
• Current account opening guidelines.
• Interest rates on advances and deposits.
• FEMA-related RBI directions.
• Basel III capital requirements.

How to Study a Circular

For each important RBI circular, extract these five points:

1. What changed?
2. Who does it apply to?
3. What is the effective date?
4. What is the limit or time period?
5. What was the earlier rule?

Memory rule: Objective questions are usually created from these five points. Professional Knowledge is 75 of 100 marks, so regulatory currency is where the paper is won.

Priority 4: KYC, AML and Compliance

Prepare Thoroughly

Customer Due Diligence

• Customer Acceptance Policy.
• Customer Identification Procedure.
• Customer Due Diligence.
• Beneficial Owner.
• Officially Valid Documents.
• CKYCR.
• Periodic KYC updation.

Risk & Verification

• Risk categorisation.
• Video KYC / V-CIP.
• Politically Exposed Persons.
• Sanctions screening.
• Mule accounts.
• Suspicious transactions.

AML Framework

• Money laundering.
• STR and CTR.
• FIU-IND.
• PMLA.
• FATF.

Exam focus: Pay particular attention to limits, timelines and exceptions.

Priority 5: Priority Sector Lending

Recurring Topic

Targets & Sub-Targets

• Overall PSL target.
• Agriculture target.
• Small & Marginal Farmers.
• Micro Enterprises.
• Weaker Sections.

Eligible Categories

• Education.
• Housing.
• Renewable Energy.
• Social Infrastructure.
• Export Credit.

Mechanics

• PSL Certificates.
• Adjusted Net Bank Credit.
• Classification of eligible loans.

Revision tip: Keep all current targets and sub-targets on a single revision sheet.

Priority 6: MSME Banking

Regulation Meets Appraisal

Definitions & Registration

• Latest MSME classification.
• Udyam Registration.
• Micro, Small and Medium definitions.
• Priority Sector treatment of MSME loans.

Credit & Guarantee

• Working capital finance.
• CGTMSE.
• TReDS.
• MUDRA.
• PMEGP.
• Credit Guarantee schemes.

Protection & Relief

• MSME restructuring.
• Delayed payment provisions.
• MSME Samadhaan.

MSME questions often combine a regulatory limit with an appraisal calculation.

Priority 7: Banking Laws

Exam-Oriented Provisions Only

Do not attempt to read entire Acts. Study only the provisions a branch head actually applies.

Important Acts

• Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
• Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
• Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
• SARFAESI Act, 2002.
• Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
• FEMA, 1999.
• PMLA, 2002.

Also Cover

• MSMED Act, 2006.
• Consumer Protection Act.
• RTI Act.
• Indian Contract Act.
• Limitation Act.
• Bankers' Books Evidence Act.

For Each Act, Focus On

• Authority.
• Limit.
• Time period.
• Powers.
• Important sections.
• Practical banking application.

NI Act, FEMA, SARFAESI and RTI have been directly tested in earlier Generalist Officer papers.

Priority 8: Recovery of Loans

Practise Case Questions

Legal Routes

• SARFAESI.
• DRT and DRAT.
• Lok Adalat.
• IBC.
• Enforcement of Security Interest.

Settlement

• Compromise settlements.
• One Time Settlement.
• Recovery Agents.

Supporting Concepts

• CERSAI.
• Limitation.
• Guarantor liability.
• Wilful default.

Exam tip: Case-based questions are more useful here than memorising legal definitions.

Priority 9: Deposits and Customer Service

You Are Being Hired as a Branch Head

Account Types

• Savings accounts.
• Current accounts.
• Term deposits.
• BSBDA.
• Inoperative accounts.
• Unclaimed deposits.

Operation of Accounts

• Nomination.
• Joint accounts.
• Either or Survivor.
• Minor accounts.
• Deceased depositors.
• TDS on deposits.

Rights & Protection

• Deposit insurance and DICGC.
• Garnishee orders.
• Attachment orders.
• Banker-customer relationship.
• Rights of bankers.
• Ombudsman framework.

Post Code 01 places successful candidates as Branch Head after probation, so branch banking questions carry real weight.

Priority 10: Trade Finance and Forex

Important Even If You Are Not in Forex

Trade Instruments

• Letter of Credit.
• Bank Guarantee.
• Documentary Collection.
• Bill Purchase and Discounting.

Export & Import Finance

• Import finance.
• Export finance.
• Packing Credit.
• Post-shipment finance.

FEMA & Accounts

• FEMA basics.
• Current and capital account transactions.
• Liberalised Remittance Scheme.
• EEFC accounts.
• NRE / NRO / FCNR accounts.

Forex Mechanics

• Exchange rates.
• Nostro / Vostro / Loro.
• SWIFT.

Trade finance questions appear regularly in professional banking examinations.

Priority 11: Basel and Risk Management

Rules Over Models

Capital Framework

• Basel I, II and III.
• CRAR.
• CET1.
• Tier 1 Capital.
• Tier 2 Capital.
• Capital Conservation Buffer.
• Risk Weighted Assets.

Types of Risk

• Credit Risk.
• Market Risk.
• Operational Risk.
• Liquidity Risk.
• Internal controls.

Liquidity Standards

• Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR).
• Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR).

Preparation tip: Do not over-study advanced risk modelling. Prioritise branch-level rules.

Priority 12: Government Schemes

Consistently Asked

Concentrate on schemes connected with banking, MSME, agriculture, financial inclusion and credit.

• PMJDY.
• PMMY / MUDRA.
• PMEGP.
• Stand-Up India.
• PM SVANidhi.
• PM Vishwakarma.
• PMJJBY.
• PMSBY.
• APY.
• CGTMSE.
• Agri credit schemes.
• Housing schemes.

Revision focus: Also cover broader financial inclusion initiatives and know each scheme's limit, eligibility and the lending bank's role.

Priority 13: Banking and Financial Awareness

Not General Current Affairs

IOB has no separate General Awareness section for Post Code 01. Banking and financial awareness comes inside Professional Knowledge, so preparation should remain banking and finance centred.

Regulators & Institutions

• RBI and monetary policy.
• SEBI.
• NABARD.
• SIDBI.
• NPCI.
• Public-sector banks.

Developments to Track

• Banking, economy and finance news.
• Government financial schemes.
• Digital payments.
• Important financial appointments.
• Banking mergers and acquisitions.
• Financial inclusion and regulatory changes.

Final-month strategy: Revise 6 months of major banking developments, with extra weight on recent RBI news.

English Language

25 Questions · 25 Marks · 30 Minutes

English Language Syllabus

• Reading Comprehension.
• Para Jumbles.
• Para Completion.
• Vocabulary.
• Error Spotting.
• Sentence Improvement.
• Cloze Test.
• Rearrangement of Sentences.

Where the Marks Are

• Reading Comprehension and Cloze Test carry the largest blocks.
• Error Spotting and Sentence Improvement score the quickest.
• Build vocabulary from the comprehension passages themselves.

How to Prepare

• Give English 20–30 minutes daily, not an entire study day.
• Read one banking or business editorial every day.
• Attempt Para Jumbles and Para Completion after securing the sure marks.

Strategy: No minimum qualifying mark applies to English, but with only 100 marks in total, each of these 25 marks can affect your rank.

Five Things to Get Right

1. Treat Professional Knowledge as the whole exam — it carries 75 of 100 marks.
2. Keep one revision sheet containing limits, timelines, targets and ratios, and revise it weekly.
3. Practise case-based questions on IRAC, KYC and recovery instead of studying only definitions.
4. Track six months of RBI circulars using the five-point extraction method.
5. Give English 20–30 minutes a day and protect its 25 marks.