(SBI) is the largest
Bank in
India . It is also, measured by the number of branch offices and employees, the largest bank in the world. Established in
1806 as
Bank Of Bengal , it remains the oldest commercial bank in the
Indian Subcontinent and also the most successful one providing various domestic, international and
NRI products and services, through its vast network in India and overseas. With an asset base of $126 billion and its reach, it is a regional banking behemoth. The bank was nationalised in
1955 with the
Reserve Bank Of India having a 60% stake. It has laid emphasis on reducing the huge manpower through
Golden Handshake schemes and computerizing its operations.
The roots to the State Bank of India are traceable to the first decade of
19th Century , when the
Bank Of Calcutta , later renamed as the
Bank Of Bengal , was established on
2nd June 1806 . The Bank of Bengal and two other Presidency banks, namely, the
Bank Of Bombay (incorporated on
15 April 1840 ) and the
Bank Of Madras (incorporated on
1st July 1843 ) were amalgamated on
27th January 1921 , and the reorganized banking entity was named the
Imperial Bank Of India . All these Presidency banks were incorporated as
Joint Stock Companies , and were the result of the
Royal Charter s. The Imperial Bank of India continued to remain a joint stock company. Until the establishment of a central bank in India the Imperial Bank and its early precessors served as the nation's central bank printing currency.
The
Reserve Bank Of India , which is the
Central Banking Organization of India, in the year
1955 , acquired a controlling interest in the Imperial Bank of India and the Imperial Bank of India was christened on
30th April 1955 as the State Bank of India. This acquisition of the controlling interest was done pursuant to the provisions of the State Bank of India Act 1955, an Act enacted by the
Parliament Of India .current observing a strike due to pension problems related to the employes
- established.
-
- established.
- established.
- 1861 : Paper Currency Act passed
- January 27 , 1921 : all 3 banks amalgamated to form Imperial Bank of India
- July 1 , 1955 : State Bank of India formed; becomes the first Indian bank to be nationalised.
- 1959 : State Bank of India (Subsidiary Banks) Act passed, enabling the State Bank of India to take over eight former State-associated banks as its subsidiaries.
There are seven other associate banks that fall under SBI. They all use the "State Bank of" name followed by the regional headquarters name. These were originally banks belonging to
Princely States and were nationalised in
1959 . In tune with the first Five Year Plan, emphasizing the development of rural India, these banks were integrated with the State bank of India, to expand it's rural outreach. The State Bank group refers to the 7 associates and the parent bank. All the banks use the same logo of a blue keyhole. There has been a proposal to merge all the associate banks into SBI to create a "mega bank" and streamline operations.
State Bank of India has often acted as guarantor to the
Indian Government , most notably during
Chandra Shekhar 's tenure as
Prime Minister Of India . With more than 9400 branches and a further 4000+ associate bank's branches, the SBI has an extensive coverage. State Bank of India has electronically networked most of its branches. The bank has one of the largest
ATM network in the region. State Bank of India has had steady growth over its history, though it was marred by the
Harshad Mehta scam in
1992 . In the recent years, the bank has sought to expand its overseas operations by buying foreign banks. It is the only Indian bank to feature in the top 100 world banks list in
Fortune 500 Global rating and various other rankings. According to
Forbes 2000 listing it tops all Indian companies.
