AZB & Partners has advised India’s government, as well as the state-owned State Bank of India (SBI) on its merger with six associated public sector banks, marking the first-ever large-scale consolidation in the Indian banking industry.

This move comes in the wake of a need felt by the policymakers to recapitalize and consolidate India's state-run banks. The amalgamation is set to expand SBI’s assets by 36 percent to about $447 billion, amounting to one-fourth of the Indian banking system. Following the merger, SBI is expected to have 24,000 branches globally. 

The six banks are State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Patiala and Bharatiya Mahila Bank.  

The AZB team working on the transaction was led by partners Ashwath Rau and Anu Tiwari.