State Bank of India has officially handed over a ₹8,813 crore dividend cheque to the Central government for the financial year 2025-26. According to the Finance Minister's Office, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman received the dividend cheque from SBI Chairman C.S. Setty on Monday, June 8. The Finance Minister's Office shared the development on social media platform X, stating that FM Sitharaman received the dividend cheque from the SBI Chairman, marking the formal completion of the dividend transfer process. As per the Finance Minister's Office, the post quoted: 'Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman receives a dividend cheque of ₹8,813 crore for FY 2025-6 from C S Setty, Chairman of State Bank of India.'
The ₹8,813 crore dividend payment to the government for FY26 demonstrates SBI's sharpest profitability recovery in years and signals the bank's robust financial performance. This dividend payment represents a 9% increase from last year's dividend of ₹8,076.84 crore handed over for financial year 2024-25, marking significant growth in the bank's contribution to government treasury. The dividend payout reflects the bank's deepening earnings base and reinforces SBI's role as a consistent and significant contributor to the government's revenue base. For the Centre, dividend receipts from public sector undertakings (PSUs) and state-owned banks form a critical pillar of non-tax revenue, with SBI's contribution at ₹8,813 crore underscoring the bank's robust profitability cycle driven by improved asset quality, rising net interest margins, and expanding digital operations in recent years. The dividend follows SBI's reported 6% year-on-year rise in net profit for the January-March quarter of FY26, reaching ₹19,684 crore. SBI's Central Board declared a dividend of ₹17.35 per equity share for the year ended March 31, 2026, with the Government of India holding an approximately 55% stake in the bank as the largest shareholder.
SBI reported exceptional financial performance for FY26, with net profit crossing the ₹80,000 crore mark to reach ₹80,032 crore, registering a growth of 13% year-on-year from ₹70,901 crore in FY25. The bank's operating profit for FY26 rose 11.25% year-on-year to ₹1,23,015 crore, reflecting strong business growth and operational performance. SBI's return on assets (ROA) for FY26 stood at 1.12%, while return on equity (ROE) was reported at 18.57%. The bank's net interest income (NII) for FY26 increased by 4.08% compared with the previous year. The whole bank net interest margin (NIM) for FY26 stood at 2.91%, while the domestic NIM was 3.03%. For the fourth quarter of FY26, the whole bank NIM was reported at 2.81% and the domestic NIM at 2.93%. SBI's overall business crossed ₹109 trillion during the year, with total deposits standing at ₹59.8 trillion and advances reaching ₹49.3 trillion.
SBI demonstrated significant improvement in asset quality during FY26, with the gross non-performing asset (NPA) ratio improving by 33 basis points year-on-year to 1.49%, while the net NPA ratio improved by 8 basis points to 0.39%. The bank's agriculture portfolio also crossed the ₹4 trillion mark, highlighting continued growth in lending to the farm sector. SBI's total deposits stood at ₹59.8 trillion while advances reached ₹49.3 trillion during the year. The dividend payout comes amid the bank's strong profitability, business growth and improvement in asset quality during FY26, with the government's fiscal consolidation agenda benefiting from regular and growing dividend flows from state-owned enterprises like SBI. Capital adequacy under Basel III firmed up to 15.40%, providing a strong foundation for future growth.
