Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, Chairman, SBI
There has been no major impact of the West Asia conflict on asset quality so far and credit demand seems to be robust, said SBI Chairman Challa Sreenivasulu Setty.The RBI’s latest data on credit growth bears out Setty’s statement. As on May 29, 2026, all scheduled banks’ credit grew by a solid 16 per cent year on year.“We have not seen any major impact of the West Asia conflict on asset quality so far. But we have to be watchful. Credit demand seems to be robust. Growth seems to be robust across sectors. We have not seen any demand constraints at this juncture,” the SBI chief said on the sidelines of Citi India Conference 2026.At the Bank’s financial results presser on May 8, Setty retained a 13-15 per cent credit growth projection for FY27, with the corporate credit pipeline being strong at ₹5.50 lakh crore and likely demand for loans of up to ₹80,000 crore from MSMEs and the aviation sector under the government’s Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS)Referring to the government’s efficient fiscal management and proactive approach, Setty noted that the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme was launched after banks told the government that while the West Asia conflict may not be as intense as the Covid pandemic, it is diversified in terms of its impact on the economy and the most vulnerable segment would be the small enterprises and businesses.Published on June 3, 2026
