MUMBAI, Nov 18: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the State Bank of India (SBI) will open an additional 500 branches, aiming to elevate its total network to 23,000 by the end of FY25.
Speaking at the centenary celebration of SBI’s main branch in Mumbai on Monday, Sitharaman highlighted the significant growth of the bank since its formation in 1955 from the Imperial Bank of India (IBI), which itself was established through the merger of three presidency banks in 1921.
Reflecting on the bank’s expansion from a modest 250 branches in 1921 to its current count of 22,500, Sitharaman emphasized that this growth should be regarded as a “global record,” particularly amid criticisms regarding income disparities in India. She noted that SBI currently holds a 22.4% share of the nation’s total deposits and serves over 50 crore customers, further underscoring the bank’s pivotal role in the Indian economy.
The Finance Minister also praised SBI’s robust digital investments, stating that the bank is capable of processing up to 20 crore UPI transactions daily. This technological advancement aligns with one of the original goals in 1921 to extend banking services to a wider population.
During the event, which took place in a heritage building inaugurated in 1924, Sitharaman launched a commemorative Rs 100 coin and highlighted that SBI has 43 branches nationwide that are over a century old. She also introduced a volume documenting the bank’s history from 1981 to 1996 and indicated that a similar publication capturing SBI’s exponential growth since 2014 is in progress.
