As part of her continuing tour to the island country, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman opened a State Bank of India (SBI) branch in Trincomalee city on Thursday.
The Eastern Province Governor, Senthil Thondaman, India’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Gopal Baglay, and SBI Chairman, Dinesh Khara, were also present at the inauguration, according to a post on X by the Union Finance Ministry.
“After presiding over the branch’s opening, Sitharaman expressed gratitude for SBI’s 159-year history as the country’s oldest bank and its ongoing expansion both domestically and internationally,” the statement said.
According to the Ministry, SBI’s presence on the island nation helped the Indian government provide a $1 billion line of credit to Sri Lanka without any problems during the country’s economic crisis.
Additionally, SBI Sri Lanka keeps up its important position in foreign trade assistance for corporations.
The Ministry said in the X post that “SBI in Sri Lanka continues to scale up remittance through a robust #DigitalPlatform via SBI Sri Lanka YONO app and online banking, in addition to the in-branch operations.”
On Friday, Sitharaman—who is now in Sri Lanka for three days—will open an SBI office in Jaffna.
