SBI, Russian fund in $2-bn agreement

Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), a sovereign wealth fund, and India’s largest bank State Bank of India will jointly invest up to $2 billion (Rs.11,020 crore) to promote trade and economic cooperation projects, the Russian fund said in a statement on Monday.

Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), a sovereign wealth fund, and India’s largest bank State Bank of India will jointly invest up to $2 billion (Rs.11,020 crore) to promote trade and economic cooperation projects, the Russian fund said in a statement on Monday.

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The agreement, under which the two sides would invest up to $1 billion each, came as Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India on Monday.

RDIF said the two firms will work together to facilitate access to long-term capital in Russia and India and promote mutual investments between the two countries.

The firms will invest in infrastructure development and facilities to extract and process natural resources it added.

Putin is on his first trip to India and his visit is widely seen as a chance to reaffirm Russia’s interest in India, which has for long been a regional ally and now a partner in the BRICS group of emerging market nations.

The government plans to spend about $100 billion (Rs.551,000 crore) over the next 10 years to upgrade its largely Soviet-era military equipment and Russia is eyeing to secure a major chunk of those defence deals.