New Delhi: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday that India requires large, world-class banks to support the massive capital needs of a fast-growing economy, signalling a renewed push for consolidation and expansion in the country’s financial sector.

The government has begun discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and commercial lenders on how to shape the next phase of India’s banking evolution, she said.

“For that, we will have to sit and talk with the Reserve Bank and with the banks themselves to see how they want to take it forward...The work has already commenced,” she added.

The minister suggested that the government and the RBI are exploring multiple routes, including mergers among existing lenders, and the creation of new institutions, to build financial

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