SBI plans to raise $1.5 bn from foreign bonds

The country's largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), plans to raise $1.5 billion from foreign markets via bonds to fund its expansion and pay off securities maturing in the year.

The executive committee of the bank's board is meeting on June 29 (Wednesday) to take a decision in this regard, SBI informed BSE.

The board would examine the status and decide on long-term fund-raising in single or multiple tranches of up to $1.5 billion through a public offer or private placement of senior unsecured notes in dollars or any other convertible currency during 2016-17, it said.

Senior SBI official said part of fund raising would be under Medium Term Note. Money would be deployed to business growth of overseas offices and prepare for repayment wheere old securities are maturing.

For the fourth quarter ended March 2016, the country's largest lender posted 66 per cent slump in standalone profits to Rs 1,263.81 crore, as it more than doubled the provisions for bad loans.

The bank posted a net profit of Rs 3,742.02 crore in the corresponding January-March quarter of the previous fiscal (2014-15).

Its provision towards bad loans alone were raised to Rs 12,139.17 crore during the last quarter of 2015-16, up from Rs 4,985.83 crore in the year-ago period.