PSBs losing lead bank relationships to private counterparts, says study

According to the study, private sector lender HDFC Bank and PSU lender State Bank of India top the list of local banks which are used by three-quarter of large Indian companies

The public sector banks, weighed down with huge non-performing assets (NPAs), are losing their lead banking relationships with Indian corporates to their private counterparts, said a study conducted by Greenwich Associates, a banking consultant group.

“As of 2016, 20 per cent of large Indian corporates participating in the Greenwich Associates annual Corporate Banking Study said they used at least one public sector bank as a lead corporate bank. By 2018, that share had fallen to just 15 per cent. The bulk of those relationships went to private sector banks”, the study pointed out.

According to the study, private sector lender