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Indian lenders have raised around USD 4 billion through global bond issuances in recent months, with strong demand from international investors expected to support further fundraising in the second half of 2026. The issuances between mid-June and mid-August included fundraising by HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda. Citi India said investor demand allowed several lenders to secure tighter pricing than initially indicated. The fundraising comes after the Reserve Bank of India introduced measures to attract more foreign currency into the country amid pressure on the rupee.
Indian lenders have raised around USD 4 billion through global bond issuances in recent months, and the trend is expected to continue during the remaining part of the second half of 2026, according to Citi India, which has been involved in arranging some of the transactions.
The fundraising began with HDFC Bank's USD 750 million issuance in mid-June. The latest transaction was Bank of Baroda's cumulative USD 700 million fundraising through two instruments.
Other major issuances included State Bank of India's USD 500 million five-year bond and ICICI Bank's USD 1 billion five-year bond. SBI's issue achieved a spread of T+88, or 0.88 per cent, over the US Treasury benchmark, marking its tightest five-year spread since the bank's own issuance last September.
ICICI Bank's USD 1 billion issue was priced at a spread of T+100. Citi said it was the largest USD senior bond issuance by an Indian private sector bank in nearly 14 years.
Axis Bank had raised a combined USD 800 million through two instruments. This included USD 300 million through five-year senior unsecured fixed-rate notes at T+110 and USD 500 million through perpetual NC5.5 RegS subordinated fixed-rate notes carrying a 6.875 per cent coupon.
Citi India said strong demand in recent transactions and continued international investor interest in Indian financial sector credit were likely to support further issuances. The bank did not disclose the exact amount it had facilitated for Indian lenders but said it had been closely involved in the fundraising activity.
The fundraising comes after the RBI announced a concessional foreign exchange swap facility and other measures in June to attract foreign currency into India amid sustained pressure on the rupee. Banks continue to have time until December to raise funds under the incentives announced by the central bank, although the more successful FCNR(B) deposit initiative has since been discontinued.
Investor demand has been strong across several of the recent transactions. HDFC Bank's issue generated peak orders of around USD 2.1 billion, while SBI's issuance attracted demand of about USD 2.4 billion.
The strong order books also enabled lenders to reduce the final pricing from their initial guidance. This indicates that international investors have continued to show interest in Indian bank credit despite wider global market considerations.
Source PTI
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