Union Cabinet approved merger of SBI with its five subsidiaries

The Union cabinet on 15 June 2016 approved the merger of the State Bank of India (SBI) with the five subsidiaries of Bank.

The cabinet approved the merger of the following subsidiaries-
• State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur
• State Bank of Hyderabad
• State Bank of Mysore
• State Bank of Patiala
• State Bank of Travancore

Apart from this, the Bharatiya Mahila Bank will also be merged with the SBI and the cabinet had cleared this proposal too.

Highlights of the merger
• The merger will create a behemoth with an asset base of 37 lakh crore rupees with 22500 branches and nearly 60000 automated teller machines.
• The merger necessitates changes in various acts that govern the functioning of the SBI and its subsidiary banks - which require further cabinet approval.
• The merger will make SBI as one of the top 50 banks in the world as currently no Indian bank features in the top 50 banks of the world.
 
Background
SBI had seven associate banks, of which it has merged State Bank of Saurashtra and State Bank of Indore with itself over the last 10 years. The parent bank had advances of 15.09 trillion rupees and deposits of 17.31 trillion rupees as of the end of the March quarter.

Bank consolidation was proposed by the Union Government in March 2016 at a congregation of bankers and government officials where various issues pertaining to banks were discussed. Also Read Consolidation in Indian Banking sector: Pros & Cons

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