India’s biggest bank had about $5 billion of bets against the rupee that were impacted by the regulator’s crackdown on potential speculators, according to people with knowledge of the matter, roughly 20% of the total exposure.
State Bank of India is estimating losses of about 3 billion rupees ($32 million) from the forced unwinding of these trades, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential details. The hit is seen as manageable given the bank has total assets of more than $800 billion, they said, adding they expect the spot rupee to strengthen as SBI and others exit these positions.
