SBI signs MoU with IIT Bombay to promote startups

In Banking and Finance
July 14, 2016

India’s top public sector bank, State Bank of India, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), (IIT) Bombay’s technology business incubator, to promote innovation by startups in the financial sector. As per the MoU, the bank will provide a platform for testing/piloting financial products/applications of FinTech startups that will be identified by both parties.

According to an official from SINE, one of the key pain areas for startups and entrepreneurs is funding and both IIT-B and SBI will be addressing the problem through this MoU.

This MoU will help in mentoring startups. SBI now has a Rs 200 crore fund for startups and what better place than SINE at IIT Bombay to reach out to startups to use those funds,” Poyni Bhatt, COO, SINE, told HT Education.

SINE and SBI aim to address the issues faced by the entrepreneurial community. SBI will interact with the entrepreneurial and research community at IIT Bombay, including e- cell, Desai Centre, startups of SINE to get a better idea of the latest research being done, innovations and also conduct knowledge sessions for mutual benefit.

This MoU also aim to help evaluate startups operating out of SINE or those being promoted by SINE for early stage funding within the bank’s norms.

If SBI decides to infuse funds in the startups, SINE may help the bank do initial screening for technical competency, product roadmap, innovation subject, impact of innovation etc. If SBI decides to infuse funds in any of the startups at SINE, the funding model will be considered on case to case and merit basis.

State Bank of India

State Bank of India (SBI) is the largest commercial bank in India in terms of assets, deposits, profits, branches, customers and employees. Its headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

The Government of India itself is the largest shareholder of this Fortune 500 company, with 58.60% ownership, and SBI was ranked 152^nd in The Forbes list of Global 2000 firms in May 2015.
Authorised and regulated by Reserve Bank of India and Prudential Regulation Authority. Subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and limited regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority.
In 1806, the Bank of Calcutta (later the Bank of Bengal) was founded and, in 1921, it merged with the banks of Madras and Bombay to form the Imperial Bank of India. In 1955, SBI was created by an act of Parliament to succeed the Imperial Bank of India.
Chairperson – Arundhati Bhattacharya.