State Bank of India has introduced CHAKRA, a Centre of Excellence, which is intended to fund sunrise sectors that would be used to give India the next round of growth. The bank is projecting the total investment potential of almost 100 trillion within five years, both debt and equity. We interpret this as an intensive effort to support new industries in large proportions. CHAKRA will also fund industries such as renewable energy, sophisticated cell chemistry and battery storage, semiconductors, decarbonisation, intelligent infrastructure, and data centres. These are industries that require enormous capital, which is not necessarily conventional bank borrowing. SBI will develop expertise specialisation to design finances that would be appropriate to these emerging risks.
Chairman C S Setty stated that the bank has an opportunity of lending of 20-22 trillion in these regions within five years. He observed that such projects can not be based solely on debt. Mezzanine finance and blended capital might also be necessary as alternative structures. In an attempt to enhance this, SBI has been associated with 21 financial institutions. In signed agreements, partner banks will also co-finance the projects and collaborate with the project finance team at the centre of SBI. This is a model designed to create a common knowledge pool and minimise the risks in the hands of individual lenders.
Some of the international players include the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. The domestic partners consist of Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation, and NaBFID. Negotiations are also being made with the European and American lenders. Setty stated that deposit-based financing is not sufficient to address the requirements of future capital. When household savings shift to the financial markets, it is imperative to have participation by more investors. We are convinced that long-term institutional capital will be very crucial in financing projects that are heavy in infrastructure and technology.
CHAKRA will also serve as a knowledge centre, in addition to being a source of funds. The centre will publish sector reports and white papers and will be conducting industry discussions in order to inform investors and policymakers. It will also interact with the development finance institutions, start-ups, academia, and think tanks. The objective of this initiative is to boost the power of SBI in enhancing innovation and sustainable growth. The bank has become optimistic about enhancing freer movements of capital to areas that would characterise the next economic stage in India, by integrating research, collaboration, and systematised funds.
