State Bank of India leads branch banking in Mumbai

State-owned banks have largest branch networks.

Of the top six banks in India, the ones with the largest branch networks are state-owned banks, with the State Bank of India boasting the largest domestic branch network with 21,325 branches, far more than its closest rival, Punjab National Bank, which operates 6,296 branches in the country.

According to a research note from SNL Financial, meanwhile, in India's financial hub of Mumbai, State Bank of India leads in terms of branch network with 350 branches in the city, followed by ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank with 153 and 129 branches, respectively.

The next three largest banks in Mumbai in terms of branches are Bank of Baroda, Bank of India and Mumbai-based Union Bank of India with 124, 110 and 103 branches, respectively.

Together, these six banks operate around two-fifths of the SNL-covered branches in Mumbai.

Here's more from SNL Financial:

In addition to traditional branches, the industry is now moving toward digital branches, which bankers expect to not only cut costs but also grow business.

State Bank of India plans to open around 50 digital branches in the country within the next year.

Though there have only been a handful of deals for majority stakes in the domestic banking sector, there has been more than a dozen small deals involving India-based banks in the last three years.

So far in 2014, there have been four deals that were valued at more than US$50 million and/or where the equity stake owned was greater than 5% following the transaction.

Two deals were announced in 2013, while 2012 was the busiest year with 11 deals. There was only one deal each in 2010 and 2011.

The largest deal in terms of disclosed deal value was between an investor group and Mumbai-based Axis Bank Ltd., whereby the group acquired a 9% stake in the bank for 55.57 billion rupees on March 21.

The only pending deal is the purchase of Bangalore-based Amanath Co-operative Bank Ltd. by Bangalore-based Canara Bank, which was announced in 2013 but has been impeded due to a legal battle. The deal may be completed in the near future, following a court judgment.