Banking, credit, and EMIs
How banks really make money, what your credit score does, and how to read an EMI table without being fooled by the marketing.
Quick info
- Layer
- Financial Literacy
- Track
- Financial Literacy
- Estimated hours
- 4 hrs
- Chapters
- 6
- Cost on Trustner
- Free
The full chapter-by-chapter syllabus is published below so you know exactly what you're committing to. Individual lesson pages are being authored progressively over the coming weeks. Bookmark this page or browse all courses.
About this course
Most working Indians interact with banks every day and understand almost nothing about how banks actually make money, what their credit score really represents, or why an EMI table is misleading. This course closes that gap with plain language and worked examples.
Who this is for
- A first-time salaried earner trying to understand the bank statement.
- Anyone considering a home loan, car loan, education loan, or credit card.
- Parents wanting to teach the next generation what they wish they had known.
What you'll learn
- How a bank earns from your savings deposit and lends it back to you
- What your CIBIL / Experian score is, what affects it, and how to repair it
- How EMI is calculated, why early years are mostly interest, and how prepayment shortens loans
- The hidden costs in credit cards — interest, late fees, foreign-exchange markups, EMI conversions
- When to use a personal loan vs a credit card vs a top-up home loan
Full syllabus — 6 chapters
- 1Chapter 1
How a bank actually works
- The deposit-loan cycle and why it produces returns
- Net interest margin (NIM) and how Indian banks earn
- Why your savings rate is so low and FD rates higher
- 2Chapter 2
Account types and the right one for you
- Savings, current, salary, and zero-balance accounts
- Sweep-in FDs and the auto-conversion options
- Interest payment, TDS on FD interest, and the 80TTA deduction
- 3Chapter 3
Credit scores — the gatekeeper of borrowing
- How CIBIL, Experian, Equifax, and CRIF compute your score
- The five components: history, utilisation, length, mix, enquiries
- Reading a credit report; spotting and disputing errors
- How long a default stays on your record, and what you can do
- 4Chapter 4
EMI math without the marketing
- The EMI formula and the front-loaded interest structure
- Why a 20-year home loan repays ~2× the principal as interest
- When a single extra principal payment shortens the loan by years
- Floating vs fixed rates; the MCLR / EBLR regime and your rate review
- 5Chapter 5
Loans you actually need vs ones you don't
- Home loan as the most efficient loan in India
- Education loan — the moratorium, deduction, and re-payment schedule
- Personal loans, the cost of speed, and when they make sense
- Top-ups vs gold loans vs LAS (loan against securities)
- 6Chapter 6
Credit cards — the most expensive bank product
- How interest accrues, the grace period, and the minimum-due trap
- Late fees, FX markup, EMI-conversion charges, and skipped fees
- Reward economics — when they actually reward you
- The two rules for using a credit card without going broke
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