India’s largest lender State Bank of India has rolled out a specialised centre of excellence called CHAKRA, aimed at accelerating financing and institutional support for the country’s fast-emerging “sunrise sectors” — areas that policymakers and industry believe will define India’s next phase of economic expansion.
The initiative will focus on sectors such as renewable energy, advanced cell chemistry and battery storage, electric mobility, green hydrogen, semiconductors, decarbonisation technologies, smart infrastructure and data-centre infrastructure. Together, these segments are projected to create a business opportunity of nearly ₹100 lakh crore over the next five years, according to internal estimates cited by the bank.
CHAKRA is designed as a dedicated platform to deepen project evaluation capabilities, crowd in long-term capital, and align lenders, investors and policymakers around complex, capital-intensive projects that cannot be financed through traditional bank loans alone.
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Lending alone won’t be enough
Speaking at the launch, the bank’s top management underlined that conventional debt will account for only a part of the funding required for these sectors. SBI estimates that lending opportunities of ₹20–22 lakh crore could emerge over the next five years, but emphasised that these projects will need a mix of debt, equity and alternative financing structures.
The bank has signalled openness to mezzanine financing and hybrid structures, reflecting the long gestation periods, evolving technologies and higher initial risks associated with sunrise sectors. SBI is also positioning itself as a contributor to policy thinking, particularly around risk frameworks and capital structures suitable for next-generation infrastructure.
Building a global financing network
To strengthen execution capacity, SBI has signed memoranda of understanding with 21 financial institutions, allowing their project finance teams to work alongside SBI professionals within the CHAKRA framework. This collaborative model is expected to improve risk assessment, speed up decision-making and enable co-financing of large projects.
Japanese banks, including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, are among the early international participants. Domestic development finance institutions such as Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation and NaBFID have also joined the initiative.
SBI said discussions are underway with European and American banks as well, reflecting growing global interest in India’s infrastructure and clean-technology push. Japanese lenders, in particular, bring long experience in funding infrastructure and advanced manufacturing projects, making them natural partners for CHAKRA’s objectives.
Why CHAKRA matters now
The launch comes at a time when India’s domestic savings are increasingly flowing into capital markets and alternative investment avenues, even as demand for long-term infrastructure financing continues to rise. While stable savings and term deposits have so far supported project finance, bank executives acknowledged that attracting non-bank capital will be critical to sustaining growth in sunrise sectors.
By creating a structured knowledge and coordination hub, SBI aims to improve investor confidence, standardise risk understanding, and make large-scale projects more bankable for a wider pool of capital providers.
Beyond lending: research and policy support
CHAKRA’s mandate goes beyond financing. The centre will produce white papers, sectoral research reports, knowledge programmes and policy discussion notes, and host industry consultations aimed at shaping regulatory and investment frameworks.
The bank plans to work closely with development finance institutions, multilateral agencies, banks, non-bank lenders, industry groups, corporates, startups, universities and think tanks. The objective is to reduce information gaps, encourage innovation-led companies and support India’s transition to a sustainable, technology-driven growth model.
Part of a larger strategy
CHAKRA follows SBI’s earlier initiative to set up a centre of excellence for MSMEs and reflects a broader strategy to move beyond balance-sheet lending into ecosystem building. By combining capital, expertise and partnerships, the bank hopes to play a catalytic role in sectors that are expected to reshape India’s industrial and energy landscape.
For policymakers and investors alike, the initiative signals that India’s largest lender is betting heavily on sunrise sectors — and is prepared to rethink traditional financing models to unlock the next wave of growth.
About the author – Rehan Khan is a law student and legal journalist with a keen interest in cybercrime, digital fraud, and emerging technology laws. He writes on the intersection of law, cybersecurity, and online safety, focusing on developments that impact individuals and institutions in India.
