Merger of SBI with associates to be cleared soon: Jaitley

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Monday that on the issue of consolidation of public sector banks, the government as of now is only considering State Bank of India's (SBI) proposal of merging 5 subsidiaries and the Bharatiya Mahila Bank with itself and a decision on this will be taken soon.

"We are looking at SBI at the moment. It (proposal) is with the government and it will respond. The government's policy by and large supports consolidation. I have indicated that in the budget itself," he said, speaking to reporters after a review meeting here with heads of state-run banks and financial institutions.

Queried on a timeline for the decision, Jaitley said: "We are expecting (approval) shortly."

The SBI Board, last month, approved the proposal for merger of its five subsidiary banks -- State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Hyderabad - as well as the Bharatiya Mahila Bank and sought the government's approval for the same.

Among the subsidiaries, only the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Travancore are listed, while the merger will create a combined customer base of 50 crore.

--IANS

bc/vd