State Bank Of India

Corrects bids received from institutional buyers to $25 billion from $2.5 billion in paragraph 5

By Vivek Kumar M

July 16 (Reuters) - India's SBI Funds Management drew bids worth 3 trillion Indian rupees ($31.14 billion), making the asset manager's $1.03 billion initial public offering (IPO) the country's fourth-most-subscribed issue.

The subscription numbers include $278.5 million raised from anchor investors, including BlackRock and sovereign wealth funds from Singapore, Abu Dhabi, and Norway.

The IPO, which closed on Thursday, marked a strong comeback for India's primary market after a subdued first half of the year. India is expected to see a busy pipeline of public offerings in the second half of the year, with mega listings from Reliance Jio and National Stock Exchange expected before the end of 2026.

SBI Funds Management, a joint venture between the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) SBI.NS and Europe's biggest asset manager Amundi AMUN.PA, is India's largest asset manager, overseeing funds worth 12.5 trillion rupees ($131 billion) as of March 2026.

The demand for SBI Funds Management's shares was led by institutional investors, who bid for $25 billion worth of shares, 140 times the number of shares on offer for them, exchange data showed.

The portion set aside for retail investors and SBI's shareholders was subscribed 3.6 times and 9.5 times, respectively.

The stock is expected to begin trading on July 21.

SBI Funds' IPO stands behind public offerings of Reliance Power RPOL.NS, LG Electronics India LGEL.NS, and Bajaj Housing Finance BAJO.NS, in terms of quantum of bids received, data from PRIME Database showed.

The asset manager is well placed to capitalise on its market leadership, strong distribution network and robust profitability, analysts at Aditya Birla Money said in a note dated July 14.

So far this year, India has seen IPOs worth nearly $4 billion, sharply below last year's $21.8 billion. However, the activity is expected to pick up in the second half of 2026, with 251 companies planning to raise 4.93 trillion rupees ($51.7 billion) in the pipeline, as per PRIME Database.

"Heavy bidding (for SBI Funds IPO) signals that investors are willing to commit fresh capital to quality franchises, which can help revive sentiment for the upcoming (IPO) pipeline," said Dhiraj Relli, managing director and chief executive officer at HDFC Securities.

($1 = 96.3450 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

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Updates throughout with bids, comment, background

By Vivek Kumar M

July 15 (Reuters) - India's SBI Funds Management saw its $1.03 billion initial public offering (IPO) fully subscribed on the second day of bidding on Wednesday, as investors endorsed the asset manager's extensive distribution network and the potential of the country's expanding mutual fund market.

SBI Funds Management, a joint venture between the country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) SBI.NS and Europe's biggest asset manager Amundi AMUN.PA, managed funds worth 12.5 trillion rupees ($131 billion) as of March 2026.

The IPO, which values India's largest asset manager at 1.17 trillion rupees, or 38 times its 2026 earnings per share, has drawn bids for around 212 million shares against 124.56 million on offer, as of 1:33 p.m. IST, exchange data showed.

Retail investors bid for 68 million shares, 1.26 times the shares set aside for them.

Before the IPO's public launch, the company secured $278.5 million from institutional investors , including BlackRock and sovereign wealth funds from Singapore, Abu Dhabi, and Norway.

The IPO will close for subscription on Thursday, and the shares are expected to begin trading on July 21.

Analysts said the company's strong presence beyond major cities positions it to benefit from rising retail participation in mutual funds with 64 consecutive months of inflows through June 2026.

Smaller cities are contributing more heavily to growth in assets under management for fund managers, and that puts SBI Funds Management in a strong position, said Ambareesh Baliga, a Mumbai-based market analyst.

SBI Funds Management can also draw on the State Bank of India's wide distribution network.

The IPO, India's largest so far in 2026, follows a subdued first half for primary market fundraising as a spike in crude oil prices driven by the Iran war raised growth concerns in Asia's third-largest economy.

India is expected to see a busy pipeline of public offerings in the second half of the year, with mega listings from Reliance Jio and National Stock Exchange expected before the end of 2026.

($1 = 96.2300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Andrei Khalip)

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July 13 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• STATE BANK OF INDIA - CONCLUDED ISSUANCE OF USD 200 MIO SENIOR UNSECURED REG-S, FLOATING RATE NOTES

Source text: ID:nBSE1ZHmvt

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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July 9 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS has agreed to sell a 1.42% stake in its asset management unit SBI Funds Management SBIA.NS to a group of 30 investors for about 16.55 billion rupees ($173.52 million) ahead of the unit's planned IPO, the bank said late on Thursday.

($1 = 95.3800 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Chris Thomas and Mrinmay Dey in Mexico City; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)

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The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, July 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - India has survived a massive withdrawal of hot overseas money. In fact, the domestic stock market barely flinched. Now falling oil prices and a search for shelter from AI exuberance are luring foreigners back in after they pulled out a record $48 billion over the past year and a half. But bargains may prove scarce thanks to local mom-and-pop investors setting a firm floor for valuations.

Granted, perceptions of the country being an AI laggard and a major economic victim of the Iran war precipitated a 15% drop in the Nifty 50 index .NSEI in the first three months of the year. A partial recovery since leaves the metric essentially flat over the past 12 months. Now global funds are returning, if gingerly, investing a net $401 million into Indian equities in the first week of July.

They're coming back to valuations that have barely budged. The MSCI India index .MIIN00000PIN is trading at 20 times forward earnings, on a par with its 10-year average. That's due in large part to the 335 billion rupees ($3.5 billion) of monthly inflows that retail investors pour into equity and hybrid schemes of local asset managers, fuelled partly by a wildly successful decade-long industry publicity campaign.

It's some comfort for companies planning mega initial public offerings this year, from Reliance Industries' RELI.NS telecom business Jio Platforms to bourse operator National Stock Exchange. What appears to be stable and sizeable domestic interest in equities boosts issuers' bargaining power against domestic money managers like State Bank of India-backed SBI.NS SBI Funds and $17 billion ICICI Prudential Asset Management IICL.NS, which are under pressure to swiftly deploy chunks of the inflows they receive. The combined $7 billion the two companies seem likely to raise is equivalent to two months of equity fund inflows.

To be sure, there were some cracks in retail confidence too. Months of poor returns, as well as the Middle East conflict, pushed inflows to a one-year low in May. Earnings at Nifty 50 companies, which Kotak Institutional Equities estimates grew 8% during the financial year ended March 31, may test the patience of investors used to double-digit increases.

Ultimately, tight capital controls put a lid on domestic money leaving the country, and Indian savers no longer like low-yielding bank deposits. Combined with a more sizeable return of foreign cash, that could yet push stocks up. But locals' ability to roll with the punches is a victory in itself.

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CONTEXT NEWS

Foreign investors pumped a net $401 million into Indian equities during the first five sessions of trade in July, showed data from NSDL.

(Editing by Antony Currie; Production by Ujjaini Dutta)

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By Jayshree P Upadhyay and Vivek Kumar M

MUMBAI, July 7 (Reuters) - SBI Funds Management, India's largest asset manager, will draw investments from Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Singapore's GIC as part of its $1.2 billion initial public offering, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

SBI Funds Management, a joint venture between the country's largest lender State Bank of India SBI.NS and Europe's largest asset manager Amundi AMUN.PA, manages assets worth 12.5 trillion Indian rupees ($131.1 billion) as of end-March 2026.

It is expected to be valued at around $12.3 billion, the sources said, with SBI and Amundi selling a collective 10% of their shares in the joint venture, as part of the issue.

The IPO, likely to open next week, will kick off a busy pipeline of public offerings for India in the second half of the year, with Reliance Jio and National Stock Exchange mega listings expected before the end of 2026.

SBI Funds Management, GIC, Amundi and ADIA declined to comment. SBI did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

According to capital market data provider PRIME Database, 251 companies are planning to raise 4.93 trillion rupees ($51.7 billion) and waiting to come to market.

SBI Funds Management's IPO is drawing strong demand from large domestic institutional investors along with top foreign investors from Singapore and the Middle East, the sources said.

"The offering has commitments worth nearly five times of the amount reserved for institutional investors," one of the two sources said.

Despite the strong institutional demand, the fund house plans to keep 50% of the offer reserved for individual investors, the source said.

IPO PIPELINE REBUILDS

SBI Funds Management's public offer will be India's largest IPO since early 2026 after the Iran war led to a rise in oil prices, hurting investment sentiment toward the South Asian economy, heavily dependent on imported fuel.

Other IPOs lined up this month include a $1.2 billion issue from Manipal Health Enterprises and a $471 million issue from Indo-MIM, two merchant banking sources, separate from those cited earlier, said.

IPOs of the National Stock Exchange of India(NSE) and Reliance Jio with an estimated size of $3.3 billion and $3.8 billion, respectively, are expected to open later in the year.

"While the big-name IPOs that are potentially lined up for this month have good traction, the kind of response they receive and listing will decide the fate of the other bigger issues in the pipeline," said Suraj Krishnaswamy, managing director and head of investment banking coverage at Axis Capital.

In 2025, Indian firms raised $21.8 billion from IPOs. So far in 2026, they have raised $3.8 billion.

A successful return of large IPOs will also depend on a revival of foreign investor interest in Indian equities. These investors have sold shares worth $29 billion in the secondary markets so far this year, although selling pressure has eased and investors are giving India a second look, Reuters reported last month.

"We remain optimistic about the $20 billion IPO fundraise this year despite a subdued first half. Although, a lot of heavy lifting ($8 billion to $9 billion) will be done by three to four large IPOs that are in the pipeline," said Bhavesh Shah, managing director and head of investment banking at Equirus.

($1 = 95.3300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay and Vivek Kumar M; Editing by Ira Dugal and Jacqueline Wong)

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By Nishit Navin

BENGALURU, June 30 (Reuters) - Indian fintech firm Cashfree Payments plans to deepen its cross-border business with offerings such as overseas investment and travel payments as it seeks to tap rising demand for international transactions, CEO Akash Sinha said on Monday.

Cashfree, backed by State Bank of India SBI.NS, the country's largest lender, currently facilitates cross-border e-commerce payments.

It plans to begin pilots this year for overseas investment, travel and business-to-business payment services, expanding beyond online shopping, Sinha told Reuters in an interview.

"Cross-border is an exciting space...the market is not a challenge. It's a growing market," Sinha said, attributing the opportunity to India's increasing integration with the global economy through trade agreements.

"It's more about how do we crack it. Can we build the right product? Can we make a compliant product? Those are the challenges."

Indian payment firms have stepped up their focus on cross-border services as outbound travel, overseas education, investments and global trade gather pace.

Unlike domestic payment processing, where intense competition has squeezed pricing, cross-border transactions typically offer better margins because they involve foreign exchange and additional regulatory compliance.

Sinha said Cashfree aims to build payment infrastructure that makes cross-border transactions smoother, cheaper and operationally hassle-free for consumers and businesses.

Cashfree, which has a cross-border payments aggregator licence from India's financial regulator, expects the business to contribute 25% of revenue within three to four years, up from 10% currently.

It reported revenue of nearly 10 billion rupees ($105.7 million) in financial year 2026.

The firm, founded in 2015, processes transactions worth $80 billion annually for more than 1 million businesses, according to its website.

($1 = 94.6050 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nishit Navin; Editing by Shreya Biswas)

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The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, June 29 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The world's top venue for trading in equity options by volume is treading carefully with its own listing plans. India's National Stock Exchange may seek a $52 billion market capitalisation in its Mumbai initial public offering. After a decade of delays to its debut, accepting a valuation discount to rival BSE BSEL.NS, formerly Bombay Stock Exchange, is a prudent hedge against regulators tightening rules to curb retail losses and their push to loosen the bourse's dominance.

Founded in 1992, NSE executes equity options contracts worth 142 trillion rupees ($1.5 trillion) in turnover annually, thanks to the rapid uptake of trading by retail investors following the Covid pandemic. NSE controls three-fourths of that lucrative trade. A listing will also yield a windfall for its long-time backers like Temasek and State Bank of India SBI.NS.

They and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan, who took the role in 2022 after 10 years leading BSE, all appear determined to ensure a deal is done. Assume NSE's earnings of 103 billion rupees increase 34% for the year to the end of March - the same pace of earnings growth Visible Alpha estimates for BSE - and the $52 billion market capitalisation works out to 36 times earnings, compared to BSE's 49 times multiple.

Both exchanges are exposed to a potential plunge in trading volumes, with each generating roughly 60% of its top line from derivatives. The official crackdown, which last year temporarily banned high frequency trader Jane Street, also saw authorities increase minimum contract sizes, implement a ban on lending to high-frequency traders and impose higher taxes on derivatives transactions. If retail investors' chunky losses continue, more restrictions could follow.

NSE's sheer outsize influence is seen as a problem too. Its market share in options trading has tumbled to 75% from 97% two years ago, when the regulator began tightening control over the number and frequency of contracts the exchanges can offer. As a result, NSE's bottom line fell 16% in the most recent financial year even as BSE's grew 88%. Another reason for Chauhan to accept a discount is simply that BSE's scarcity premium will disappear. All that makes selling cheap an imperative more than an option.

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CONTEXT NEWS

India's National Stock Exchange will sell up to 149 million shares, 6% of its total outstanding, in a Mumbai initial public offering, the bourse said in a draft prospectus filed on June 17.

State Bank of India, a Morgan Stanley affiliate, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Temasek are among existing shareholders who will offer shares in the issue.

A record 20 bookrunning lead managers are advising the issue, led by Kotak Mahindra and JM Financial.

(Editing by Una Galani; Production by Aditya Srivastav)

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By Dharamraj Dhutia and Khushi Malhotra

MUMBAI, June 25 (Reuters) - Three Indian development finance institutions are planning to raise at least $1.5 billion through foreign-currency bank loans under the central bank's discounted overseas borrowing facility, three people familiar with the plans said.

The institutions are favouring loans over bonds because none has issued dollar debt before and the process is simpler, the sources added.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) are each seeking to raise at least $500 million through foreign-currency loans, with NaBFID the furthest along after initiating talks with lenders, an executive confirmed.

"We expect to raise up to $2 billion via ECBs in this financial year. At present, we are planning to raise $500 million through the ECB route, and we have already started our activity and are exploring in the market," NaBFID managing director Rajkiran Rai told Reuters.

"With the RBI window opening, ECBs work out much cheaper. For the loan, the landed cost could be in the range of 6.5%-7.0%, NaBFID's Rai added.

The institution had also raised $125 million via a smaller dollar loan tranche in March, the sources added.

The sources declined to be identified as they are not authorised to speak to the media. NABARD and SIDBI did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

NABARD and SIDBI, which have not yet tapped foreign funding, have initiated preliminary talks and could approach the market over the next 30 to 40 days, according to all the sources.

"There is a lengthy procedure involved in a debut dollar bond sale, and it is time-consuming. If an institution is not going to be a regular issuer like EXIM Bank, it makes little sense to choose bonds over loans," one of the sources said.

Based on the credit ratings, dollar loans may be just marginally expensive than bonds for now.

The Reserve Bank of India earlier this month allowed banks and state-run companies raising funds overseas to access a subsidised hedging facility, lowering the cost of managing currency risk as part of a broader effort to attract dollar inflows and support the rupee.

Since then, HDFC Bank HDBK.NS, Axis Bank AXBK.NS and Power Finance Corp PWFC.NS have raised a combined $1.85 billion through dollar bonds, while Bank of Baroda BOB.NS and State Bank of India SBI.NS are preparing for similar issues.

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia and Khushi Malhotra; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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State Bank of India's central board on Thursday approved raising up to ₹60,000 crore through debt instruments in the current financial year. The instruments include long-term bonds, Basel III-compliant Additional Tier 1 bonds, and Tier 2 bonds. The funds may be raised via public offer or private placement in Indian rupees or other convertible currencies from domestic and overseas investors. The plan is subject to government approval where required. The board meeting, which began at 10 am, concluded the agenda by 1:15 pm. The approval follows a prior intimation of the board meeting on June 15.

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Adds Temasek declined to comment in paragraph 15

By Jayshree P Upadhyay

MUMBAI, June 18 (Reuters) - Investors from Indian state-owned lenders to Singapore's sovereign wealth fund and Canada's national pension manager are set to reap a $2.6 billion windfall as India's National Stock Exchange (NSE) moves ahead with a long-awaited listing.

NSE — the country's largest bourse and the world's most active derivatives exchange — filed draft papers for an initial public offering late on Wednesday, following years of regulatory delays.

The listing will be a pure offer-for-sale, with existing shareholders offering to sell about 6% of the exchange's equity and no fresh equity raised.

NSE has more than 200,000 investors currently, and its shares trade at close to 2,000 rupees ($21.18) in the unlisted market, according to trading platforms. That suggests a valuation of some $57 billion, setting the bourse up to become the world's fifth most valuable after London Stock Exchange Group.

The exchange may offer shares at a 5% to 10% discount to private market valuations, said three sources, including merchant bankers. The valuation under discussion is around 1,900 rupees per share, they added, declining to be identified as they are not authorised to speak to the media.

"At this valuation NSE would attract incoming investors while not short-changing existing ones," one source said.

A final decision on pricing will be taken closer to listing, following investor roadshows.

At 1,900 rupees per share, the IPO would be worth $3.3 billion, making it one of India's two largest public offerings alongside Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio, which is likely to list this year in an IPO worth some $4 billion.

NSE said it could not comment beyond that it has filed an IPO prospectus when asked by Reuters about the valuation.

WINDFALL GAINS

The top 10 investors offering shares are set for a windfall worth some $2.6 billion, based on acquisition prices disclosed in the draft prospectus.

State Bank of India, the country’s largest lender, will lock in gains of about 47 billion rupees ($497.67 million), while MS Strategic (Mauritius), a Morgan Stanley fund, will make about 29.34 billion rupees, according to Reuters calculations based on prospectus disclosures and valuation estimates.

Singapore's Temasek stands to make 20.67 billion rupees via its Aranda Investment arm, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will gain 18.71 billion rupees.

State Bank of India and Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. CPPIB and Temasek declined to comment.

Anubhav Dayal, founder of Hong Kong-headquartered Soach Global Corporation, said its flagship fund first bought into NSE in early 2016 and is now selling 20% of its holding to provide liquidity to investors.

"It has proven to be a great investment. We saw the potential in NSE to serve India's masses," Dayal said, adding that the firm continues to hold NSE as a key investment. "NSE will continue to play an important role in India's economic activity."

GROWTH PROSPECTS AND REGULATORY RISKS

The exchange is likely to begin IPO roadshows over the next two months, the sources said, adding that both domestic mutual funds and global funds have shown early interest in anchoring the issue.

The exchange’s revenue has more than doubled between April 2019 and April 2026 to about 187 billion rupees, driven by strong growth in options trading. However, growth has slowed over the past year after a series of regulatory curbs on derivatives.

The exchange, detailing regulatory risks in its filing, said revenue could continue to be impacted by government and regulatory measures aimed at tempering derivatives activity.

In its IPO papers, NSE said growth will hinge on continued expansion in first-time investors, rising trading activity, innovation in derivatives products and a push into commodities.

Ravi Varanasi, a former group president at NSE who now runs a consultancy advising Indian exchanges, said NSE's near-total grip on the cash market gives it a strong long-term growth opportunity.

"As India’s market capitalisation deepens, cash trading volumes are expected to rise steadily," he said.

($1 = 94.5250 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay; Additional reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Ira Dugal and Kevin Buckland)

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By Dharamraj Dhutia

MUMBAI, June 17 (Reuters) - India's largest private lender, HDFC Bank HDBK.NS, has accepted bids worth $750 million for its planned dollar bonds, capitalising on the central bank's subsidised hedging window for overseas borrowings, three merchant bankers said on Wednesday.

The deal is the largest by an Indian lender since the State Bank of India's SBI.NS $750 million five-year bond sale in May 2023 and comes as SBI and Bank of Baroda BOB.NS line up similar overseas debt sales.

HDFC Bank priced its 5-year bond issue at 90 basis points over U.S. Treasuries, translating to a yield of 5.0670%.

After launching with guidance at 120 basis points over Treasuries, robust investor demand compressed the spread, bankers said.

The sources could not be named as they are not authorised to speak to the media. HDFC Bank did not reply to a Reuters email seeking comment.

Earlier this month, the RBI said external commercial borrowings by banks and state-run companies would qualify for a subsidised hedging facility, helping cut the cost of managing currency risk.

The step forms part of a wider RBI push to draw in dollar inflows and bolster the rupee.

"Considering the hedging discount, the all-in landed cost of funds for the bank should be around 7%," one of the bankers said.

Merchant bankers expect inflows of around $15 billion to $20 billion through the ECB route over the next six months.

Proceeds of the bond issue will be used to support overseas branches and subsidiaries, fund growth in offshore businesses and for general corporate purposes, bankers said, citing a term sheet.

The lender also has a call option due in August for a perpetual bond it had sold five years ago.

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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By Dharamraj Dhutia

MUMBAI, June 16 (Reuters) - India's largest private lender, HDFC Bank HDBK.NS, is looking to raise at least $500 million via dollar bonds this week, tapping the central bank's subsidised hedging window for overseas borrowings, three sources directly aware of the matter said on Tuesday.

The private bank's issue comes after Reuters reported that state-run lenders State Bank of India SBI.NS and Bank of Baroda BOB.NS were also in talks to raise dollars this way.

HDFC Bank's plans include a five-year bond issue, with an initial price guidance of 5-year U.S. Treasury yield plus 120 basis points, the sources said.

"The final cutoff should come below 100 bps over U.S. Treasury yields, as strong demand is expected in the book-building process," said one of the sources, adding the bank could decide to raise more than $500 million depending on demand.

The sources requested anonymity, as they are not authorised to speak to the media, while HDFC Bank did not reply to a Reuters query seeking comment.

Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of India said that external commercial borrowings with an average maturity of at least three years by state-run companies and banks would qualify for a swap facility at a fixed rate of 1.5% per annum, compounded semi-annually.

The facility lowers hedging costs and helps cushion a fall in the rupee.

Merchant bankers expect inflows of around $15 billion to $20 billion through this route over the next six months.

The proceeds from HDFC Bank's bond issue will be used to meet the funding requirements of the bank's foreign branches and foreign subsidiaries, develop and expand business in the foreign offices and meet the bank's general corporate purposes, the sources said, citing a term sheet.

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)

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June 15 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• TO CONSIDER FUNDRAISING IN FY27 VIA DEBT INSTRUMENTS TO OVERSEAS AND INDIAN INVESTORS

Source text: ID:nBSE5tfvZk

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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By Dharamraj Dhutia and Khushi Malhotra

MUMBAI, June 12 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS and Bank of Baroda BOB.NS are set to become the first users of the Reserve Bank of India's subsidised hedging window for overseas borrowings, with plans to raise about $1 billion through five-year dollar bonds, three sources said on Friday.

The state-run lenders are each targeting around $500 million, the sources said.

Neither bank responded to Reuters requests for comment. The sources requested anonymity as they are not authorised to speak to media.

"Both the banks will aim to complete the issue before the end of this month, as they had been waiting for the central bank's facility to be formalised," one of the sources said.

The Reserve Bank of India said this week that external commercial borrowings with an average maturity of at least three years by state-run companies would qualify for a swap facility at a fixed rate of 1.5% per annum, compounded semi-annually.

The facility lowers hedging costs, making overseas borrowing cheaper for companies and banks.

"With 150 basis point of hedging discount, the all in landed cost for these lenders should be around 6.25%-6.50%, which is cheaper than their local cost of borrowing," another source said.

Merchant bankers expect inflows of around $15 billion to $20 billion through this route over the next six months.

In September 2025, SBI, the nation's lender had raised $500 million through five-year dollar denominated bonds at a coupon of 4.50% payable semi-annually.

While SBI has maturities of dollar bonds worth around $750 million coming up later this month and in July, Bank of Baroda currently has no outstanding dollar debt, according to financial data aggregator Cbonds.

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia and Khushi Malhotra; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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Added details about SBI's rate hike

By Gopika Gopakumar

MUMBAI, June 10 (Reuters) - Some banks raised rates on foreign currency deposits for non-resident Indians by as much as 300 basis points on Wednesday, in a likely bid to attract dollar inflows after the central bank eased regulatory restrictions last week.

The Reserve Bank of India will bear the ‌full hedging cost for three- to five-year non-resident deposits, it said on Friday, as part of a broader set of measures to encourage overseas flows and curb weakness in the rupee.

The unit is Asia's second-worst-performing currency this year, down 6% so far, and slipping to record lows in May.

HDFC Bank HDBK.NS, India's largest private sector lender, hiked rates by 235-265 basis points to 6% on three- to five-year deposits.

State Bank of India, the country's largest bank, raised rates by as much as 300 basis points across three- to five- year deposits. For deposits up to $1 million, it will now offer between 5.25% to 5.75% on of three- to five-year tenures. For deposits above $1 million, the bank will offer between 5.5% and 6% on tenures of three to five years.

AU Small Finance Bank AUFI.NS increased rates by 195 bps, offering 7.1% on three-year deposits and 7% on five-year deposits.

Yes Bank YESB.NS has set the rate at 7% on three-year deposits, 7.05% on four-year deposits and 7.10% on five-year deposits, according to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday. A Yes Bank spokesperson did not respond to Reuters' request for comment.

Other banks are expected to announce their new rates this week.

Lenders could raise as much as $35 billion to $40 billion via these foreign currency deposits until September this year, according to a Reuters report. The RBI said it is also open to banks providing guarantees to offshore lenders to lend to NRIs, who can place these borrowed funds as deposits.

The RBI had last launched a concessional forex swap facility for non-resident Indians in 2013 when the ​rupee ⁠had depreciated sharply due to the U.S. Federal Reserve's "taper tantrum". Under that scheme, HDFC Bank mobilised $3.4 billion, followed by ICICI Bank ICBK.NS, SBI SBI.NS and select foreign banks.

(Reporting by Gopika Gopakumar in Mumbai; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Diti Pujara)

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-- Source link: https://tinyurl.com/34y7ayaj

-- Note: Reuters has not verified this story and does not vouch for its accuracy

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June 5 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• STATE BANK OF INDIA - RATNA TEJA DINAKARA AKELLA GETS ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AS GROUP CHIEF RISK OFFICER

Source text: ID:nBSE56VR8v

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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By Nikunj Ohri

NEW DELHI, May 18 (Reuters) - India's finance ministry directed state-run banks, insurers and financial institutions on Monday to implement cost-cutting measures, including sharp curbs on travel and a phased transition to electric vehicles, according to an order reviewed by Reuters.

The order, part of a broader austerity push, will cover institutions like the State Bank of India SBI.NS, Bank of Baroda BOB.NS and Life Insurance Corp of India LIFI.NS and million of their employees across the country.

Under the new measures, all meetings, reviews and consultations must be conducted via video conferencing unless physical presence is deemed essential, the order issued by the Department of Financial Services said.

Foreign travel by top executives of the organisations - including chairpersons, managing directors and chief executive officers - should be kept below prescribed limits, with overseas engagements to be attended virtually wherever possible, it said.

Separately, the government has asked the organisations to accelerate adoption of electric vehicles.

"All organisations may aim at replacing the petrol and diesel vehicles hired by them in their head offices and branch offices by electric cars as far as possible," the order said.

The move follows a call last week by Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging officials to follow austerity and exercise restraint in spending, as the government braces for the economic fallout from rising global tensions.

Prolonged Middle East conflict risks slowing growth, stoking inflation and straining the balance of payments, with the Indian rupee already at record lows as Asia's worst performer this year.

Several Indian states have directed employees to work from home two days a week as part of cost-cutting efforts.

(Reporting by Nikunj Ohri; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

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May 12 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• SBI - APPROVED LONG TERM FUND RAISING OF UP TO $2 BILLION DURING FY 2026-27

• SBI - APPROVED FUND RAISING VIA BONDS IN US DOLLAR, ANY OTHER MAJOR FOREIGN CURRENCY

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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Updates with closing levels

BENGALURU, May 11 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS shed more than $11 billion in market value over two sessions on narrowing margins and a disappointing fourth-quarter earnings miss that brokerages warned could signal a tougher profitability cycle ahead.

Shares of India's largest lender by customers dropped 4.5% to a year-to-date low of 973.60 rupees on Monday, extending Friday's near-7% post-results fall.

The selloff brought the stock down more than 10% in two sessions, wiping out $11.3 billion.

NSE data showed the heaviest fresh call writing on SBI's 1,000 strike on Monday, signalling that investors expect any near-term rebound in the stock's price to likely be capped at that level.

About 95 million shares changed hands over the two sessions, almost five-fold the 30‑day average of 18.7 million.

Analysts said the lender's fourth-quarter earnings miss reinforced concerns that Indian banks are entering a tougher profitability cycle, with rising funding costs beginning to erode lending margins.

SBI on Friday reported a narrower net interest margin of 2.8% for the quarter, compared with 2.98% in the previous three-month period, and also missed analysts' profit estimate.

"NIM compression is becoming more visible as funding costs reprice faster," JP Morgan said on Monday, adding that earnings momentum could moderate in the coming quarters.

"Core earnings were underwhelming, with incremental margins tightening," Bernstein said, cautioning that upside catalysts may be limited without a stabilisation in margins.

SBI's asset quality remained a key positive, with bad loans and credit costs staying benign, brokerages said, but warned it may not fully offset pressure on net interest income from margin compression.

Nonetheless, analysts retained a constructive long‑term view, citing the bank's strong balance sheet, scale and market leadership.

The two-session selloff erased SBI's year-to-date gains, leaving the stock down 0.8% in 2026, though it still outperformed the benchmark Nifty 50's .NSEI 8.8% drop.

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon and Pranav Kashyap in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Janane Venkatraman)

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May 8 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS missed fourth-quarter profit estimates on Friday.

Net profit rose 5.6% to 196.84 billion rupees ($2.08 billion) for the quarter ended March 31, from 186.43 billion rupees a year earlier, but missed analysts' average estimate of 203.12 billion rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG.

($1 = 94.6237 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa and Nishit Navin in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

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May 7 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• STATE BANK OF INDIA - TO DECIDE ON LONG TERM FUND RAISING IN SINGLE / MULTIPLE TRANCHES OF UP TO US$ 2 BILLION

• STATE BANK OF INDIA - TO CONSIDER FUND RAISING UP TO $2 BILLION VIA REG-S/144A BONDS IN FY 2026-27

Source text: ID:nBSE2LGxSW

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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By Dharamraj Dhutia

MUMBAI, May 5 (Reuters) - Currency in circulation in India surged by over 610 billion rupees ($6.40 billion) in the first 15 days of April, pushing the total to a record 42.3 trillion rupees, and a sustained pattern could impact liquidity, economists said.

The spike, up 11.8% on-year and the highest since early 2017 after demonetisation, extends a rise in cash demand seen over the past six months and through the last financial year, central bank data showed.

Currency demand had been "somewhat subdued" relative to GDP growth in recent years, setting the stage for a sharper rebound, helped by strong rural demand, said Abhishek Upadhyay, co-head of research at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership.

A cut in the goods and services tax on several daily-use items in September also boosted demand.

Lower interest rates have further supported cash usage, particularly in rural areas with a higher propensity to spend, said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, group chief economic adviser at State Bank of India.

He added that higher prices of precious metals may have also lifted currency in circulation through recycling of gold and silver from households.

The surge, if it persists, could pose a challenge for surplus liquidity in the banking system, which the central bank has tried to maintain to support economic activity.

HDFC Bank expects the liquidity surplus to average around 1% of deposits in the first half of the current financial year, before easing to 0.5% in second half.

"But if CIC continues to remain elevated due to rise in inflation, further acceleration in rural demand, and any impact from state elections, liquidity balances could move towards the lower band of the forecast range," economist Sakshi Gupta said.

The RBI said in March that holding the surplus within a range of 0.6%-1.1% of deposits helps in keeping the spread between weighted average call rate and policy rate narrow.

RBI's infusions have kept banking liquidity in surplus but going forward, while RBI dividend will support it, CIC will drain it further, said Dhiraj Nim, an economist and FX strategist at ANZ.

($1 = 95.2725 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Dharamraj Dhutia; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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By Jayshree P Upadhyay and Vibhuti Sharma

MUMBAI, April 28 (Reuters) - Singapore's state-owned investor Temasek and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board are among 20 investors looking to sell down stakes when India's National Stock Exchange goes public this year, sources familiar with the deal said.

The share sale by India's largest exchange would have a value of $2.75 billion, based on a total valuation for the NSE estimated at $55 billion by a platform that trades its unlisted shares.

It will be one of two large share sales in India this year, along with an issue by billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio Platforms. The NSE has been trying to list since 2016, with key domestic rival BSE Ltd BSEL.NS listing in 2017.

Also among the sellers will be India's state insurer Life Insurance Corporation LIFI.NS, its largest bank State Bank of India SBI.NS and homegrown private equity fund ChrysCapital, the two sources said.

Overall, existing shareholders in the NSE will sell a 5% stake in the IPO, added the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to name the investors for the first time, as they were not authorised to talk to media.

In response to Reuters' queries, the NSE said its board has approved an initial public offering through an offer for sale, but declined further comment at this stage.

LIC, SBI and ChrysCapital did not respond to requests for comment. Temasek and CPPIB declined to comment.

The NSE is also the world's most active equity derivative trading platform, with a listing approved this year after a long delay due to litigation with markets regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

A monetary settlement to resolve the litigation is likely, opening the way for the public offer.

With 177,807 shareholders, the NSE is India’s largest unlisted company by number of investors, making the offering exercise more complex.

LIC, SBI, Temasek Holdings, Morgan Stanley and CPPIB are the institutional shareholders.

Monday was the deadline for expressions of interest to sell, sought by merchant bankers as part of the IPO process, both sources said.

NSE will now move on to file its draft prospectus with SEBI by next month, after its financial results are declared.

NSE's quarterly after-tax profit rose 15% to 24.08 billion rupees in the third quarter ended December 31, boosted by improvements in derivatives trading. Its consolidated revenue from operations rose nearly 7% from the previous quarter.

(Reporting by Jayshree P. Upadhyay and Vibhuti Sharma in Mumbai; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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Rewrites throughout with comments from post-earnings call

By Nishit Navin

April 22 (Reuters) - India's SBI Life Insurance SBIL.NS said on Wednesday it is well-positioned to handle any potential tightening of regulations on selling policies through banks as it continues to boost sales online and through agents.

India is stepping up efforts to curb misselling of financial products. In February, the central bank proposed draft rules to address such sales through lenders. The secretary at the finance ministry's department of financial services has urged banks to avoid exclusive insurer tie-ups, ET Now reported on Tuesday.

SBI Life, which gets more than 60% of business from the banks, with a substantial portion coming from parent State Bank of India SBI.NS, reported a slowdown in new business growth and a marginal decline in profit on Wednesday.

Analysts had expected business growth to moderate in the March quarter as the Middle East war spiked market volatility, weighing on demand for market-linked insurance products.

The insurer's net profit declined to 8.05 billion rupees ($85.9 million) for the three months ended March, down from 8.14 billion rupees a year earlier, dragged by a one-third rise in operating expenses.

Net premium income rose 16%, driven by growth in renewals and one-time premiums.

SBI Life's annualised premium equivalent sales — a key measure of new business — grew 5.5%, slowing from the 25% growth in the preceding quarter. Four brokerages had expected the firm to clock a growth of 8%.

The value of new business, or expected profit from new policies, dropped about 2% to 16.3 billion rupees while the margin on such business stood at 27.5% as of March-end, among the highest in the sector.

Last week, peer HDFC Life HDFL.NS reported slower new business growth, while ICICI Prudential Life's ICIR.NS profit rose.

($1 = 93.7725 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nishit Navin in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Mrigank Dhaniwala)

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April 21 (Reuters) - State Bank of India SBI.NS:

• STATE BANK OF INDIA - PROMOTES EIGHT OFFICIALS AS DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTORS EFFECTIVE APRIL 21, 2026

Source text: ID:nNSE4Fm9zT

Further company coverage: SBI.NS

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Updates story from April 16 to add market reaction on Friday in paragraph 4, context in paragraphs 7 and 10

By Nidhi Verma, Jaspreet Kalra and Nimesh Vora

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI, April 16 (Reuters) - India's central bank has urged state-run oil refiners to curb spot dollar purchases and tap a special credit line for their foreign exchange needs, three sources said, reviving measures used earlier in the Ukraine war to ease pressure on the rupee.

A surge in oil prices and heavy foreign portfolio outflows have battered the Indian currency. The rupee has fallen more than 3% to record lows this year, making it Asia's worst-performing major currency.

Using the special credit facility would reduce dollar demand from refiners, helping ease pressure on the rupee, two of the sources said. Refiners are major buyers of dollars to pay for oil imports.

When Indian markets opened on Friday morning, the rupee INR=IN strengthened by 0.4% to 92.80 against the dollar, its strongest level in a week.

The state-run refiners have been asked to access the credit line via the State Bank of India, the sources said. SBI is India's largest bank and is state-backed.

Since the large state-run lender already handles sizeable merchant flows, funneling oil-related FX demand through SBI can help reduce the overall market impact, one of the sources said.

The refiners are also being encouraged to route daily dollar purchases through SBI instead of multiple banks, the source said, because pooling dollar demand with one lender would help better manage the market impact.

All three sources declined to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media. The Reserve Bank of India and SBI did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

The credit line is available to major state-run refiners Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp, which together control about half of India's 5.2 million barrels per day of refining capacity.

Refiners can either buy dollars at the RBI reference rate or draw on the credit line for their FX needs, a second source said. The credit line can alleviate immediate dollar demand from the market, supporting the rupee.

None of the refiners responded to emails seeking comment.

Three spot FX traders, separate from the three sources cited earlier, said they had seen an anecdotal decline in the oil companies' activity in the spot market in recent days.

RUPEE STRAIN

The RBI has turned to crisis-era measures, which sources said have been in place for about two weeks, to support the rupee amid pressure linked to the Iran war.

Concerns about spillovers from the conflict helped push the rupee to an all-time low past 95 per dollar in late March.

The central bank has taken other steps to shore up the currency. It has clamped down on arbitrage trades that it said exacerbated market volatility and barred Indian banks from offering corporates non-deliverable forward contracts.

The RBI has also sold dollars from its FX reserves to support the currency.

(Reporting by Nidhi Verma, Jaspreet Kalra and Nimesh Vora; Editing by Mark Potter and Kate Mayberry)

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By Nidhi Verma, Jaspreet Kalra and Nimesh Vora

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI, April 16 (Reuters) - India's central bank has urged state-run oil refiners to curb spot dollar purchases and tap a special credit line for their foreign exchange needs, three sources said, reviving measures used earlier in the Ukraine war to ease pressure on the rupee.

A surge in oil prices and heavy foreign portfolio outflows have battered the Indian currency. It has fallen more than 3% to record lows this year, making it Asia's worst-performing major currency.

Using the special credit facility would reduce dollar demand from refiners, helping ease pressure on the rupee, two of the sources said. Refiners are major buyers of dollars to pay for oil imports.

The state-run refiners have been asked to access the credit line via the State Bank of India, the sources said. SBI is India's largest bank and is state-backed.

All three sources declined to be named as they are not authorised to speak to the media. The Reserve Bank of India and SBI did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

The credit line is available to major state-run refiners Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp, which together control about half of India's 5.2 million barrels per day of refining capacity.

The refiners are also being encouraged to route daily dollar purchases through SBI instead of multiple banks, one of the sources said.

With SBI already handling sizeable merchant flows, funneling oil-related FX demand through SBI can help reduce the overall market impact, this person added.

Refiners can either buy dollars at the RBI reference rate or draw on the credit line for their FX needs, a second source said.

None of the refiners responded to emails seeking comment.

Three spot FX traders, separate from the three sources cited earlier, said they had seen an anecdotal decline in the oil companies' activity in the spot market in recent days.

RUPEE STRAIN

The RBI has turned to crisis-era measures, which sources said have been in place for about two weeks, to support the rupee amid pressure linked to the Iran war.

Concerns about spillovers from the conflict helped push the rupee to an all-time low past 95 per dollar in late March.

The central bank has taken other steps to shore up the currency. It has clamped down on arbitrage trades that it said exacerbated market volatility and barred Indian banks from offering corporates non-deliverable forward contracts.

The RBI has also sold dollars from its FX reserves to support the currency.

The rupee has strengthened following the bank's measures, recovering about 2% from its record low. It was last quoted at 93.20 per dollar on Thursday.

(Reporting by Nidhi Verma, Jaspreet Kalra and Nimesh Vora. Editing by Mark Potter)

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By Bharath Rajeswaran and Nishit Navin

BENGALURU, April 15 (Reuters) - Indian banks are expected to report a steady profit rise in the January-March quarter, four brokers said, aided by credit growth and liquidity buffers, while higher bond yields and forex arbitrage curbs weighed on treasury income.

Private banks are likely to report about 8%-12% on-year profit rise, with HDFC Bank HDBK.NS and ICICI Bank ICBK.NS scheduled to post their results on April 18.

State-run lenders may report an advance of about 2%, similar to the previous two quarters, aggregate estimates from Motilal Oswal, Jefferies, PhillipCapital, Elara Capital and Yes Securities showed.

Private banks' higher core operating income should cushion margin pressure, while bond yields are expected to weigh more heavily on state-run banks' treasury gains.

After a slow start to the fiscal year 2026, loan demand picked up in the third quarter.

The government's move to cut goods and services tax encouraged people to spend more, while the Reserve Bank of India's slashing of the cash reserve ratio gave banks more money to lend.

Top private lender HDFC Bank posted a loan growth of 12% in the March quarter, while ICICI Bank and state-owned State Bank of India SBI.NS could log 14.2% and 14.5%.

"We estimate banks to post around 12% to 13% loan growth in FY2027, aided by steady growth in retail and MSME loans and improvement in corporate loans," said Vishal Narnolia, assistant vice-president, research, ICICI Securities.

However, in contrast to the first nine months of FY2026, yields hardened in the March quarter, which will limit banks' profitability, said Narnolia.

Curbs on forex arbitrage further limited trading income at bigger lenders such as SBI, ICICI, HDFC and Axis Bank AXBK.NS.

Quarterly updates from top lenders indicate a high-single-digit to low-double-digit jump in deposits, similar to the previous on-year quarter.

Strong year-end inflows and healthy traction in retail deposits are likely to aid deposits, according to brokerages.

The bank index .NSEBANK fell 15.6% in the March quarter, slightly more than the 14.5% drop in the benchmark Nifty 50 index .NSEI.

​

(Reporting by Nishit Navin and Bharath Rajeswaran; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)

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