Banks' merger plan on the anvil; SBI and SBP first in queue

The government has asked IDBI Bank and United Bank of India to prepare a consolidation plan. A daily newspaper has reported that the government will first begin merger process between State Bank of India and State Bank of Patiala.

It may be recalled that talks have been going on for long for merging SBI’s subsidiaries with the parent bank. SBI first merged its State Bank of Saurashtra with itself in 2008. Two years later in 2010, State Bank of Indore was merged with SBI. 

The country’s largest lender has five associate banks—State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Hyderabad. Among these, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Travancore are listed entities.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his Budget speech had said, "There have been some suggestions for consolidation of Public Sector Banks. Government, in principle, agrees to consider these suggestions."

Jaitley, speaking to reporters after the Budget, had said that the consolidation could be between a big bank and its subsidiaries.