SBI aims to be one-fourth of India's GDP by assets: Chairman C S Setty

Setty highlighted that India has to focus on the emerging sectors

State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman C S Setty has said the country’s largest lender aims to expand its asset size from the current 20 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) to 25 per cent by 2047.

 

“SBI is often seen as a proxy for the Indian economy, as it has a 23 per cent share in deposits and a 20 per cent share in loans. For more than 15-20 years, the bank’s asset size has consistently been around 20 per cent of the country’s GDP. As India advances towards the Viksit Bharat goal, SBI is positioned to support this growth,” Setty said during a conversation with Dilip Asbe, managing director and chief executive officer of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), in a video posted on NPCI’s YouTube channel.

 

Setty said the lender would like to be one-fourth of the Indian economy in terms of assets. “That also gives us the aspiration to eventually become one of the top 10 or 20 global banks by asset size. Today, we are the only Indian bank among the top 50,” he said. As of the end of FY25, SBI’s balance sheet size crossed ~66 trillion, he said.

 

Setty highlighted that India has to focus on emerging sectors, such as semiconductors, green hydrogen, and battery storage. Over the years, SBI has not only been helping the industries in terms of financing, we are also supporting them to build the capability because we understand the sectors. So, we are setting up an industry cooperative or coordinated body called “Centre of Excellence” for project financing of emerging sectors in SBI,” he said.

 

A lot of such newage sectors would contribute to the Indian economy and SBI will be ready for financing these sectors, he said.

 

He underscored that SBI is the only multinational Indian bank with a global presence. Its international business is focused on supporting Indian corporates in accessing global markets and raising funds in those countries, including through external commercial borrowings.

 

Currently, SBI’s overseas operations contribute 10 per cent to the overall balance sheet, which they would like to take it 12-13 per cent, going forward.

 

“We operate in 29 countries with over 240 touchpoints,” Setty said, adding that the bank continues to expand its global operations to align with Indian corporates’ ambitions. “We are the largest trade finance providers with Indian corporates today. That will continue,” Setty said.