SBI unveils CHAKRA Centre for financing sunrise sectors

State Bank of India (SBI), has announced the launch of ‘CHAKRA’ – Centre of Excellence (CoE) for financing sunrise sectors that are critical to India’s economic development.

The centre will serve as a knowledge-led platform to enable financing for next-generation, technology-driven and sustainability-focused sunrise sectors.

“SBI’s focus lies in enabling these capital-intensive sectors by directing capital flows responsibly, strengthening risk assessment capabilities and developing innovative financing structures aligned with evolving business models and policy priorities,” the bank said.

Inaugurating the centre M. Nagaraju, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Government of India said, “The vision of the Centre is to become a coordinated ecosystem platform covering knowledge-sharing, project appraisal, capacity building, and evidence-based policy engagement will meaningfully accelerate India’s progress.@

The Centre will focus on eight sunrise sectors namely Renewable Energy, Advanced Cell Chemistry & Battery Storage, Electric Mobility, Green Hydrogen, Semiconductors, Decarbonisation, Smart Infrastructure, and Data Centre Infrastructure, that are emerging as key drivers of India’s economic future. 

By 2030, these eight sunrise sectors are expected to entail capital investment of over ₹100 lakh crore. 

“The Centre will work towards enabling this massive investment,” SBI said. Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, Chairman, State Bank of India, said, “India’s growth over the coming decades will be anchored in innovation, sustainability and advanced manufacturing.”

“With CHAKRA, SBI is strengthening its institutional capability to understand emerging sectors, design specialised financing solutions and partner with the ecosystem to enable projects that meaningfully contribute to the nation’s development journey,” he said.

“The Centre of Excellence reinforces SBI’s leadership in new-age technologies and climate finance, enhancing India’s integration into the global value chain, and accelerating progress,” he added.

The Centre will facilitate structured engagement with development finance institutions, multilateral agencies, banks, NBFCs, industry bodies, corporates, start-ups, academia and policy think-tanks. 

Through CHAKRA, SBI aims to build strong capabilities, support innovation‑focused enterprises, and improve the flow of capital to sectors driving India’s sustainable and technology-led future, it said.