• SBI plans to complete core banking modernization in two years
• Bank upgrades hardware, software, and shifts to microservices
• Private cloud, API ecosystem, and fintech partnerships drive innovation

State Bank of India (SBI) expects to complete the modernization of its core banking infrastructure within the next two years, according to Ashwini Kumar Tewari, Managing Director for Corporate Banking and Subsidiaries. Speaking at the Singapore FinTech Festival, Tewari detailed how India’s largest bank is overhauling its legacy systems to improve speed, scale, and resilience while ensuring uninterrupted customer experience.

Tewari explained that SBI is following a four-part strategy to rebuild its technology backbone. The bank is upgrading its hardware, shifting from Unix to Linux, and gradually hollowing out its core banking system by externalizing high-volume functions such as vendor and government payments. At the same time, SBI is deploying microservices for tasks like inquiries and accounting to create a more flexible and modular system.

He added that SBI is also building a private cloud infrastructure to support scalability and enhance data security while staying compliant with regulatory norms. “We are modernizing even as we continue operations. Our systems must always remain available to customers”, he said, stressing the bank’s focus on service continuity.

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Tewari highlighted SBI’s evolving relationship with the fintech ecosystem, noting that the bank now sees fintechs as collaborators rather than competitors. To support innovation, SBI has created an innovation hub and sandbox that offers access to nearly 300 APIs, enabling fintechs to test and integrate new solutions.

He emphasized that any fintech working with SBI must meet strict standards for scale, security, compliance, and user experience key requirements for operating within the bank’s massive network.