Japan's SMBC Sets Up In India's Growing GIFT City Hub

Tom Burroughes

9 July 2024

Japan’s (SMBC) is starting operations at the new GIFT City financial hub in India – a centre vying to compete with other centres.

The bank’s new GIFT City branch will focus on the foreign currency-denominated lending business, SMBC said in a statement yesterday.

SMBC now has four branches in India – New Dehli, Mumbai, Chennai and now GIFT City, aka Gujarat International Finance Tec-City.

Several financial institutions have set up in GIFT City, such as Vistra, the provider of advisory and administrative support to private wealth, capital market, corporate and fund clients. A few days ago, reports said HSBC plans to offer dollar-denominated products to non-residents from the hub.

Plans to create the GIFT City hub go back more than a decade.