The State Bank of India (SBI) and the German development bank KfW today concluded a USD 300 million ( INR 1, 956 crores) loan facility to support rural and micro-enterprise lending in India. The loan has a V.G. Kannan, Managing Director signed on behalf of SBI, while KfW was represented by Roland Siller, Director General Europe and Asia and Nicolai Tust, Principal Country Manager. With a twin focus on agricultural and microenterprise loans, the facility is designed to further strengthen and extend SBI’s priority sector lending activities. SBI is onlending these funds to underserved sectors, thereby contributing to the generation of growth, employment and income “Broader financial inclusion is a fundamental objective for KfW,” said Siller on the occasion. “Joining hands with India’s largest bank provides an unprecedented opportunity to translate that objective into reality.” Kannan said that he is glad that KfW has chosen SBI as its partner to foster a focused growth in agriculture sector where SBI is already a market leader with more than 20% of the market share. He expects the relationship to further grow in other strategic sectors like clean energy where SBI has alreadycommitted to support in line with Indian Government initiatives to reduce the carbon footprint.The entire process of fund raising was facilitated by SBI’s subsidiary, SBI Capital Markets.About SBI: SBI is the oldest and largest bank of India. As on date, the Government of India owns 59% of the bank’s equity capital. The SBI group as a whole offers a wide range of financial and non-financial products. With over 16,000 branches and 190 offices worldwide, SBI is India’s largest commercial bank, measured by virtually every possible metric: profits, assets, deposits, branches and employees. On a standalone basis, SBI reported a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs.131 billion for 2014-15 on a total balance sheet size of INR 20840 billion.About KfW Development Bank: With a balance sheet size of EURO 489 billion, KfW is one of Germany’s largest banks and a leading promotional bank worldwide. Established in 1948 as a public law institution, KfW is owned 80 per cent by the Federal Republic of Germany and 20 per cent by the federal states (“Länder”).KfW Development Bank, which is an integral part of KfW, works on behalf of the German government to finance and support programs and projects that mainly involve public sector players in developing countries and emerging economies. In India, KfW Development Bank is active mainly in the fields of energy, urban development, financial sector development as well as protection of the environment and natural resources. SME promotion is another key pillar of KfW’s operations in order to foster inclusive growth and reduction of poverty.