New Delhi, May 24 -- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved a record dividend payout of Rs.2.7 lakh crore to the central government for the fiscal year 2024-25, marking a 27.4% increase from the previous fiscal year. The decision was taken at the 616th meeting of the Central Board of Directors of the RBI held under the chairmanship of governor Sanjay Malhotra. While this is the highest dividend paid by RBI up until now, economists and analysts expected the transfer to be higher, at Rs.3 lakh crore. The 2025-26 Union Budget has provided for Rs.2.6 lakh crore in dividend from RBI for 2024-25. The lower-than-expected transfer is on account of a revision of the Economic Capital Framework (ECF) followed by RBI. The bank's board approved the re...