Home › Dashboards › SCB Investments

Scheduled commercial banks’ investments, year by year — India’s bank bond book

Q: What are scheduled commercial banks' investments?

Scheduled commercial banks' (SCB) investments are the aggregate bond and securities book that banks hold on their balance sheets, as reported in the RBI's Weekly Statistical Supplement. The overwhelming majority are Statutory-Liquidity-Ratio (SLR) eligible Government Securities — central Government Securities (G-Secs) and State Development Loans (SDLs) — with a smaller non-SLR slice of corporate bonds, commercial paper, certificates of deposit, mutual-fund units and equity. It is the investment counterpart to banks' loan book.

Q: What is the investment-deposit ratio?

The investment-deposit ratio is total SCB investments as a percentage of aggregate deposits — currently around 28 to 30%. Because the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) floor is 18% of net demand and time liabilities, a ratio near 28-30% means banks hold government and other securities well above the regulatory minimum, a buffer often called 'excess SLR'. The ratio has eased in recent years as credit grew faster than deposits.

Q: Why do banks' investments matter?

Banks are the largest holders of Government Securities, so their investment book is the main channel through which government borrowing is financed and through which RBI rate changes feed into bond yields. When yields rise, the mark-to-market value of this book falls, hitting bank profits; when yields fall, banks book treasury gains. The size of the book relative to deposits (the investment-deposit ratio) also signals how much room banks have to fund new loans by running down excess SLR.

Quick answerIndia’s scheduled commercial banks hold roughly Rs 68 lakh crore of investments (early 2026), up from about Rs 39 lakh crore at end-FY2019-20. The book is mostly SLR-eligible Government Securities (central G-Secs + SDLs), plus a smaller non-SLR slice. At about 28-30% of deposits — well above the 18% SLR floor — banks carry sizeable “excess SLR”. The investment-deposit ratio has eased as credit outpaced deposits. Figures are approximate and revised periodically.

The chart shows approximate total SCB investments (Rs lakh crore) by period; the table below carries the same figures plus the investment-deposit ratio, so the page is readable without JavaScript — for accessibility and AI answer engines.

SCB investments & investment-deposit ratio

Period	Total investments (Rs lakh crore)	Investment-deposit ratio	Note
FY2019-20	39	~30%	Pre-pandemic baseline
FY2020-21	44	~31%	COVID-19 — surplus liquidity; heavy G-Sec buying lifted the book
FY2021-22	48	~30%	Investments grew broadly with deposits
FY2022-23	52	~28%	Credit outpaced deposits; investment-deposit ratio eased
FY2023-24	58	~28%	Strong credit growth; some excess-SLR trimmed
FY2024-25	64	~28%	Provisional — subject to revision
Latest (Jan 2026)	68	~29%	Latest WSS fortnight; provisional

Figures are official estimates, rounded and approximate, drawn from the RBI Weekly Statistical Supplement (Scheduled Commercial Banks - Business in India); later periods are provisional and revised in subsequent vintages. The investment-deposit ratio is indicative (total investments ÷ aggregate deposits). For exact latest figures see the source linked below.

What it means for bankers

The investment book is the treasury side of a bank’s balance sheet, sitting alongside the loan book. Because most of it is SLR-eligible G-Secs, banks are the dominant buyers of government paper — the main channel that finances the fiscal deficit and the Centre’s market borrowing and the states’ SDLs. When bond yields rise, the mark-to-market value of this book falls and dents profits; when yields fall, banks book treasury gains. The investment-deposit ratio — near 28-30% against an 18% SLR floor — measures the “excess SLR” cushion banks can run down to fund new credit when deposit growth lags, a live tension as the credit-deposit ratio sits near 80%. It all moves with the repo rate and system liquidity.

Key terms in this dataPlain-English definitions of the terms behind this dashboard — see the full Indian banking glossary. SLR · Repo rate

More live dataExplore BankPulse’s other live RBI dashboards: G-Sec Yields · Aggregate Deposits & CASA · Credit-Deposit Ratio · State Development Loans · Centre G-Sec Borrowing.

SCB Investments FAQ

What are scheduled commercial banks' investments?

SCB investments are the aggregate bond and securities book banks carry on their balance sheets, as reported in the RBI Weekly Statistical Supplement. The bulk are SLR-eligible Government Securities — central G-Secs and State Development Loans (SDLs) — with a smaller non-SLR slice of corporate bonds, commercial paper, certificates of deposit, mutual-fund units and equity. It is the investment counterpart to the loan book.

How much do Indian banks hold in investments?

Aggregate SCB investments are roughly Rs 68 lakh crore as of early 2026, up from about Rs 39 lakh crore at end-FY2019-20. The book grew fastest in the COVID-19 surplus-liquidity period and more slowly since, as credit outpaced deposits. Figures are approximate, rounded and revised periodically.

What is the investment-deposit ratio?

Total SCB investments as a share of aggregate deposits — currently around 28 to 30%. With the SLR floor at 18% of NDTL, a ratio near 28-30% means banks hold securities well above the regulatory minimum ('excess SLR'). The ratio has eased as credit grew faster than deposits.

Why do banks' investments matter?

Banks are the largest holders of G-Secs, so their book is the main channel that finances government borrowing and transmits RBI rate changes into bond yields. Rising yields cut the mark-to-market value of the book and bank profits; falling yields create treasury gains. The investment-deposit ratio also shows how much room banks have to fund new loans by drawing down excess SLR.

Methodology & sources: see how BankPulse dashboards are sourced, verified & updated · machine-readable SCB investments JSON feed.

Last reviewed 19 Jun 2026 by Vikram Jain

Source: RBI Weekly Statistical Supplement (Scheduled Commercial Banks - Business in India) and the RBI Handbook of Statistics on the Indian Economy, rbi.org.in. Figures are official estimates, rounded and approximate, revised periodically; later periods are provisional. We never reproduce source text verbatim. Reviewed by Vikram Jain. Last updated 19 Jun 2026, 22:02 IST.