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STATE OF INDIA

Company Background State in Arab World

The (SBI) was incorporated in SBI has branch offices in Bahrain and Oman, and June 1806 as the Bank of Calcutta, which was later a representative office in Egypt. It manages renamed as the Bank of Bengal. In January 1921, exchange companies in Qatar, Oman and the UAE. the Bank of Bengal was amalgamated with the and the to form the SBI in Bahrain . In 1955, the Reserve Bank In 1976, SBI opened a representative office in of India (RBI) acquired a controlling stake in the Bahrain, which was upgraded to an offshore Imperial Bank of India, which was renamed as the banking unit in 1977. In 2005, SBI embarked on State Bank of India in April 1955. SBI was India's a US$ 10-million Gulf Air expansion project in first nationalised bank.With the passing of the SBI Bahrain.The bank has invested US$ 15 million in (Subsidiary ) Act in 1959, SBI took over eight its first commercial branch in Bahrain, which will former state-associated banks as its subsidiaries. be operational by the end of 2006. It would include Currently, SBI has 13 subsidiaries, 8 associates and an onsite ATM that would in due course be nearly 200,000 employees. connected to all SBI ATMs in GCC countries and 7,000 other ATMs in India.This is SBI's second SBI is the largest bank in India.As on 31 March overseas commercial branch in the Middle East, 2006, it had 70 overseas offices across after the one in Muscat. It would have 30 countries. It has correspondent banking 27 employees. SBI has designated its Bahrain office relationships with 520 international banks in as the headquartersof its operations in the Middle 123 countries.The bank also has nearly 1,100 East,West Asia and North Africa. Bilateral Key Exchange arrangements for SWIFT, enabling the flow of financial messages covering SBI in Qatar trade, remittances, etc. SBI operates as an exchange company in Qatar. In October 2006, the bank signed an electronic SBI offers a wide range of services to its fund transfer agreement with Doha Bank. SBI customers, including personal banking, agricultural Capital Markets and Doha Bank signed two banking, NRI banking, international banking, memoranda of understanding to provide project corporate banking, e-banking, SME banking, etc. financing and project management services to In FY 2005-06, the bank earned total revenues of Qatar's corporate community. Doha Bank also nearly US$ 9.3 billion, up from US$ 8.8 billion in markets the mutual funds floated by SBI in the the previous year. It generated 6.5 per cent of its Middle East. revenues from overseas operations.

66 SBI in Oman Adoption of New Technologies SBI began its branch operations in Muscat, Oman, SBI Bahrain aims to install new IT and modern in May 2004 with a capital of US$ 13 million. For communication systems. this purpose, it leveraged the agreement between the Sultanate of Oman and the World Trade Organisation, which permitted foreign banks to enter the Oman market. SBI was the second to establish operations in Oman after the , which entered Oman in 1976.

Factors for Success

Focus on Organic Growth In the Middle East, SBI opened an office in Bahrain almost 30 years ago. It also began its operations in other Middle Eastern countries by opening branches, representative offices and providing exchange services. SBI has always focussed on increasing its domain expertise, and it has increased its presence in almost all major offerings.

Strong Brand Equity SBI has been leveraging its wide presence and strong brand image in the Indian market to expand its operations abroad. It has tapped a vast segment of the NRI customers in the Arab world. Since 1976, the bank's Bahrain operations have proved its capabilities in providing financial services in overseas markets. SBI's global brand image has enabled it to win goodwill and trust from governments and financial institutions in other countries.

Future Plans

Expansion Plans SBI has major expansion plans in the Middle East. The bank has invested US$ 15 million for opening a branch office in Bahrain. It is planning to increase its presence in the Middle East by establishing new branches all across the region, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, etc. 67