September 18, 2025

Big news in Indian banking! The State Bank of India (SBI) has completed a mega deal, selling a 13.18% stake in Yes Bank to Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) for around Rs 8,889 crore. This deal includes 413.44 crore shares sold at Rs 21.50 each. The sale was done after SMBC got important approvals from the Reserve Bank of India on August 22, 2025, and from the Competition Commission of India on September 2, 2025. This deal was also approved by SBI’s Executive Committee back in May 2025. All conditions were met, so the shares easily moved to SMBC. SBI’s shares rose slightly to Rs 842.90, while Yes Bank shares dipped a bit to Rs 20.95 on the selling day. SBI Chairman, Shri Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, warmly welcomed SMBC as a new strategic partner. He said, "Yes Bank restructuring plan by RBI in 2020 was an innovative, first of its kind public sector – private sector partnership that was fully supported and facilitated by Government of India. We are incredibly proud of the journey we have shared with Yes Bank in supporting their transformation since we came onboard as the major shareholder in 2020. This is perhaps the best example of protecting the customer interests of a large bank by collaborative efforts of SBI and other banks under the guidance of Government of India and RBI." SMBC’s entry into India’s banking market is huge! The Japanese bank struck a Rs 13,483-crore ($1.6 billion) deal to get a 20% stake in Yes Bank. Plus, SMBC got permission from RBI to add two representatives to Yes Bank’s board. In 2020, SBI along with seven private banks - HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra, Axis Bank, IDFC First Bank, Federal Bank, and Bandhan Bank - all partnered to sell a total 20% stake in Yes Bank at Rs 21.50 a share. These shares were first bought at Rs 10 each back then. As part of this, SBI closed its share sale by selling 13.19% out of its 24% stake for Rs 8,889 crore. The other seven banks will share the sale of 6.81% stake worth Rs 4,594 crore. But SBI won't leave Yes Bank! It will still hold shares, while SMBC can even raise its Yes Bank stake till 24.99%. SMBC might buy an extra 4.99% stake from private equity firms like Advent and Carlyle or through new shares Yes Bank issues. There’s more! SMBC is also planning to pump ₹16,000 crore more into Yes Bank, with ₹8,500 crore as debt and ₹7,500 crore as equity. Yes Bank’s board and shareholders have already agreed to this big fundraising. This sale is not just money moving around. It shows teamwork between India and Japan and a smart way to boost banks after tough times. SBI and SMBC are dancing a financial jive that could shape India’s banking future!

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Tags: Sbi, Yes bank, Sumitomo mitsui banking corporation, Smbc, Stake sale, Banking deal,