India needs 4-5 'SBI size' banks to meet growing needs of economy: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Indian banking has to be in the immediate and long-term future, Sitharaman said.

 India needs 4-5 "SBI size" banks to meet the growing needs of the economy and industry, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Sunday.

Addressing the 74th Annual General Meeting of the Indian Banks' Association (IBA), she said the industry needs to imagine how Indian banking has to be in the immediate and long-term future.

As far as the long-term future is concerned, she said it is going to be largely driven by digitised processes and there is a need for seamless and interconnected digital systems for a sustainable future for the Indian banking industry.