TRAI Mandates 1600 Number Series for Banks and BFSI, Sets Deadlines Through March 2026
The DoT-assigned series is meant to help consumers recognise legitimate service and transactional calls, deterring impersonation fraud.
Overview
- Commercial banks must onboard by January 1, 2026, with large NBFCs, payments banks and small finance banks following by February 1, 2026.
- Mutual funds and AMCs, as well as central recordkeeping agencies and pension fund managers, are due by February 15, 2026.
- Remaining NBFCs, co‑operative banks and regional rural banks must adopt the series by March 1, 2026, and qualified stockbrokers by March 15, 2026.
- The deadline for insurance entities is still under discussion with IRDAI and will be announced separately.
- TRAI says about 485 entities have already taken over 2,800 numbers, after consultations with sector regulators via the JCoR and coordination with telecom operators.