Fixed income
A fixed rate from a company rather than a bank, and no insurance behind it
A company fixed deposit works exactly like a bank one: you deposit for a fixed term and receive a stated rate. It pays around a percentage point more, and the reason is that a bank deposit is insured up to ₹5 lakh and this is not insured at all.
That is the whole trade. Everything below is the detail you need to decide whether it is one you want to make.
- Issuers
- 4, all AAA or FAAA
- Tenors
- 12 to 60 months
- Highest rate
- 7.50%
- Lock-in
- 3 months
Corporate fixed deposits are facilitated via our partner Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd (SEBI Reg INZ000158836). A company deposit carries no deposit insurance. Rates are those published by the issuer and change without notice. Zenith Wealth is a distributor and never holds your money.
Before the rate
How does this differ from a bank fixed deposit?
The product looks identical from the outside. The differences are all in what happens if something goes wrong, and the first row is the one that matters.
| Bank fixed deposit | Corporate fixed deposit | |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit insurance | Yes, ₹5 lakh per depositor per bank, from DICGC | None. No insurer, no government backstop |
| Who holds your money | A bank, regulated by the RBI as a bank | A finance company, registered with the RBI as an NBFC |
| Where you rank if it fails | Depositors rank high, and the insured slice is paid regardless | An unsecured creditor, behind the company's secured lenders |
| Typical rate, 3 years | Around 6.50% | 7.10% to 7.50% |
| Breaking it early | Usually allowed, with a rate penalty | Not at all for the first 3 months, then with a penalty |
| How interest is taxed | At your slab rate, TDS above the threshold | At your slab rate, TDS above the threshold |
The first row is the whole trade. Roughly one percentage point more a year is what you are being paid for giving up deposit insurance, and whether that is worth it depends on how much of your savings is going in and how much of it you could stand to lose.
The panel
What rates are on offer right now?
Four companies, all rated AAA or FAAA. The spread between them is small, so this is a table to read across rather than a ranking to read down.
Rates as on 30 June 2026. They change without notice and the rate that applies is the one in force on the day your deposit is accepted.
These rates are 58 days old and have probably moved. Ask the desk for the current sheet before deciding anything.
| Issuer | Rating | 12 mo | 24 mo | 36 mo | 48 mo | 60 mo | Senior citizen | Lock-in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bajaj FinanceMonthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly | AAACRISIL | 6.60% | 6.85% | 7.40% | 7.40% | 7.40% | up to +0.35%, on deposits up to ₹3 crore | 3 months |
| Mahindra & Mahindra Financial ServicesMonthly, quarterly or half-yearly | FAAACRISIL | 6.60% | 6.85% | 7.40% | 7.45% | 7.45% | +0.25%, or +0.10% on odd tenors, up to ₹5 crore | 3 months |
| ICICI Home FinanceMonthly, quarterly or yearly | FAAACRISIL | 6.85% | 6.95% | 7.10% | 7.20% | 7.20% | +0.35%, on deposits below ₹2 crore | 3 months |
| Shriram FinanceMonthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly | AAACRISIL | 6.85% | 7.10% | 7.50% | 7.50% | 7.50% | +0.50%, with no deposit size condition stated | 3 months |
Rates are those published by each issuer and reproduced from Motilal Oswal's Investment Product Guide. They change without notice, and the rate that applies is the one in force on the day your deposit is accepted. Ratings are the rating agency's opinion, not Zenith Wealth's assessment, and can be revised at any time.
In rupees, not percentages
What will I actually receive?
Set the amount, the company and how long for. A percentage point is hard to picture; the same difference in rupees over five years is not.
The bank comparison uses a representative large-bank rate for a comparable tenor, 6.50%. Simple interest on both sides so the two are comparable, and both are gross of tax: interest here is taxed at your slab rate. That difference is what you are being paid for giving up the ₹5 lakh DICGC cover a bank deposit carries. Indicative, not an assurance.
Take these numbers to the deskRead this before depositing
What can go wrong
There is no deposit insurance
A bank deposit is covered by DICGC up to ₹5 lakh per depositor per bank, and that cover pays out whatever happens to the bank. A company deposit has nothing equivalent behind it.
If the company cannot pay, you are an unsecured creditor ranking behind its secured lenders, and recovery runs through a legal process that takes years and rarely returns everything.
A rating is an opinion, and opinions change
AAA and FAAA are the top of CRISIL's scales and say the agency considers the capacity to pay very strong. That is a real thing to know, and it is not a guarantee.
A rating can be revised at any time, and a company that is AAA when you deposit need not be AAA in year four. Nothing about your deposit changes when it is; your risk does.
Your money is locked, then penalised
There is no withdrawal at all in the first three months on any of these. After that, withdrawing early is allowed but the rate is cut, so you receive less than the table shows.
Deposit only what you will not need. If there is any chance you will, a bank deposit that can be broken is worth the lower rate.
Interest is taxed at your slab rate
It is added to your total income and taxed at your slab, exactly like bank deposit interest, and TDS applies above the threshold. At the 30% slab a 7.50% rate nets closer to 5.25%.
Form 15G or 15H can prevent TDS where your total income is below the taxable limit, which matters for a retired depositor. Confirm your own position with your chartered accountant.
The process
How placing one actually works
- 1
You say the amount and the tenor
And whether the depositor is over 60, because that changes the rate on every one of these.
- 2
Zenith sends the current rate sheet
Rates move monthly and the ones on this page carry their date. You get the live figure before you decide anything.
- 3
The deposit is placed with the company
Your money goes directly to the issuing company, which issues the deposit receipt in your name. Never to Zenith.
- 4
Interest arrives on your chosen frequency
Credited by the company straight to your bank account, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly depending on the issuer and what you picked.
Zenith Wealth never holds your money. It is an AMFI-registered distributor, ARN-331900, and it is paid a distribution fee by the issuing company, not by you.
Questions people ask us
It is not insured. A bank deposit is covered by DICGC up to ₹5 lakh per bank; a company deposit is not covered by anybody. All four companies here are rated AAA or FAAA, which is the rating agency's opinion that their capacity to pay is very strong, but an opinion is not a guarantee and it can be revised.
You are an unsecured creditor and rank behind the company's secured lenders. Recovery runs through a legal process, takes years and is often partial. There is no insurer and no government backstop, which is the difference the extra one percent a year is paying you for.
They are the top grade on CRISIL's scales, FAAA being the one used for fixed deposits specifically. It means the agency considers the capacity to pay interest and principal on time to be very strong. It is an opinion on likelihood, not a promise, and it says nothing about what you would recover if the company did fail.
Not in the first three months, on any of these. After that you can, but at a reduced rate, so you receive less than the table shows. There is no equivalent of breaking a bank deposit cleanly, so deposit only what you are confident you will not need.
Between 0.25% and 0.50% a year depending on the issuer, and every one attaches a condition: a deposit size cap, or a smaller uplift on odd tenors. Both the uplift and its condition are shown on this page. The depositor must be over 60 at the time of the deposit.
It is added to your total income and taxed at your slab rate, the same as bank deposit interest, and TDS applies above the threshold. Form 15G or 15H can prevent TDS where your total income is below the taxable limit. Confirm your own position with your chartered accountant.
Yes. The rate in force on the day your deposit is accepted applies for the full term, regardless of what the company publishes afterwards. That is why the date on this page matters: the figures here are indicative and the live sheet is what governs.
It varies by issuer and is generally ₹15,000 to ₹25,000. Ask the desk for the current minimum on the issuer you are considering, because it changes with the rate sheet.
Yes to both. Joint holding is available with either-or-survivor operation, and a nominee should always be registered at the time of the deposit rather than afterwards. It costs nothing and it is what saves your family a legal process later.
Because saying so would be advice on a specific product, which needs a registration Zenith does not hold. What the page gives you instead is every rate, every rating and every condition side by side, so the comparison is yours to make. For a shortlist suited to your own situation, speak with the desk.
Next step
Send us the amount and the tenor. We will send back the rate.
A message, not a form. Tell us how much, for how long, and whether the depositor is over 60, and you will get the current sheet with the minimum deposit for each company.