August 26, 2025 — India’s corporate banking market is shifting into a dynamic phase, as Indian companies look to buttress profit margins at home and grow their businesses internationally, and foreign banks eye the country’s commercial banking/middle market segment as an increasingly attractive target.

For the past several years, Crisil Coalition Greenwich has highlighted Indian companies’ increasing international ambitions. Data from our most recent studies show those plans remain in place and may, in fact, be accelerating—especially with regard to specific international corridors.

“For companies in India looking to expand internationally, one of the biggest targets is the Middle East,” says Ruchirangad Agarwal, Crisil Coalition Greenwich Corporate Banking Practice Leader (Asia & Middle East) and co-author of Indian corporate banking moves onto the global stage.

Over the past five years, the share of corporates in India in need of international banking services into the Middle East increased nine percentage points to 33%. Growing use of international banking services into or out of a region usually indicates increasing activity across a specific trade corridor. 

Domestic Banks Gain Traction for International Business
Historically, foreign banks have been the go-to providers for Indian companies requiring international banking services in the Middle East. Foreign banks hold approximately three-quarters of these relationships, up from two-thirds in 2020. However, progress by India’s biggest private banks should not be overlooked.

Since 2020, India’s large private banks have increased their share of relationships for international banking into the Middle East to 17% from 13% - a significant uptick for a group of competitors relatively new to the business and the region.  That development mirrors a broader trend across the Indian corporate banking market.

“In the not-so-distant past, increasing demand for international banking services would have been a gift to the foreign banks that have traditionally dominated that business,” says Ruchirangad Agarwal. “That is not the case today.”

Over the past 12 months, India’s private banks have shown increasing cross-border usage for products such as cash management by companies in India. Nearly half of corporates in India reported using a domestic private sector bank for international cash management services in 2023, with the biggest Indian private banks holding most of those relationships. In 2024, that share climbed to 51%. Over the same period, the share of Indian companies using a foreign bank for international cash management dropped from 40% to 36%.