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More jobs are likely to open up at India’s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), which plans to recruit up to 12,000 employees in the current financial year as part of a wider expansion that will also see the bank add around 200-250 branches to its network.
SBI Chairman C S Setty said the bank expects to hire between 11,000 and 12,000 people across its clerical and officer cadres during FY27.
"In terms of recruitment, I think we would be looking at around 11,000 to 12,000 appointments across both clerical and officer cadres this year," Setty told PTI.
The final hiring figure could vary depending on employee retirements and the bank's emerging staffing requirements. However, Setty said SBI expects to close the year with around 12,000 recruitments.
The planned intake is lower than the previous year's hiring, when SBI brought in a large number of technology specialists.
"Last year, we have done fairly large recruitment because we took 1,500 specialist IT officers. This year, we do not need such a large number on the IT (information technology) side," Setty said.
According to SBI's annual report for FY26, the lender recruited 25,633 people during 2025-26. This included 4,640 officers, 19,340 associates and 1,653 contractual employees.
With a workforce of more than 2.45 lakh employees as of March 2026, SBI remains one of India's largest employers.
200-250 new branches
SBI is also looking to expand its branch network, with Setty saying the bank expects its branch count to rise by around 200-250 on a net basis each year.
Despite its extensive network, the bank sees scope to expand its presence in areas where it currently has limited coverage such as newly developed residential colonies as well as commercially active districts.
"We also are looking at rationalisation of some of the branches, which means that our number broadly will be growing by maybe 200 to 250 per year on the net side," Setty said.
SBI Chairman C S Setty said the bank expects to hire between 11,000 and 12,000 people across its clerical and officer cadres during FY27.
"In terms of recruitment, I think we would be looking at around 11,000 to 12,000 appointments across both clerical and officer cadres this year," Setty told PTI.
The final hiring figure could vary depending on employee retirements and the bank's emerging staffing requirements. However, Setty said SBI expects to close the year with around 12,000 recruitments.
The planned intake is lower than the previous year's hiring, when SBI brought in a large number of technology specialists.
"Last year, we have done fairly large recruitment because we took 1,500 specialist IT officers. This year, we do not need such a large number on the IT (information technology) side," Setty said.
According to SBI's annual report for FY26, the lender recruited 25,633 people during 2025-26. This included 4,640 officers, 19,340 associates and 1,653 contractual employees.
With a workforce of more than 2.45 lakh employees as of March 2026, SBI remains one of India's largest employers.
200-250 new branches
SBI is also looking to expand its branch network, with Setty saying the bank expects its branch count to rise by around 200-250 on a net basis each year.
Despite its extensive network, the bank sees scope to expand its presence in areas where it currently has limited coverage such as newly developed residential colonies as well as commercially active districts.
"We also are looking at rationalisation of some of the branches, which means that our number broadly will be growing by maybe 200 to 250 per year on the net side," Setty said.


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