Punjab & Sind Bank

Punjab & Sind Bank is a public sector bank founded in 1908 and headquartered in New Delhi. It operates 1,623 branches, with total assets of approximately Rs 170,734 crore on the latest published figures.

Punjab & Sind Bank is the smallest public sector Member Institution on the CGSS panel, with 1,623 branches and total assets of roughly Rs 1.71 lakh crore. Its network is concentrated in Punjab and north India, and it remains a relatively specialised regional lender despite public sector ownership.

Its role in the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups. Punjab & Sind Bank is one of 40 institutions registered with the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company as a CGSS Member Institution (NCGTC MLI ID 12, classified as a public sector bank). Member Institutions are the lenders that actually extend credit under the scheme: you borrow from Punjab & Sind Bank, and NCGTC guarantees Punjab & Sind Bank against your default. That guarantee is what allows the facility to be extended to a DPIIT-recognised startup without collateral, with cover of up to Rs 20 crore per borrower, being 85 percent of the amount in default on loans up to Rs 10 crore and 75 percent above that.

What this means in practice. Set expectations against that balance sheet. Punjab & Sind is a realistic route for a smaller CGSS facility from a founder in its core geography, and an unlikely one for a facility approaching the upper end of the scheme's Rs 20 crore cover. Confirm appetite for the size you need early, before investing time in documentation.

The terms are the bank's, not the scheme's. This is the point founders most often miss. CGSS fixes the guarantee, not the loan. The interest rate, tenure, moratorium, repayment schedule and how the Annual Guarantee Fee is passed through to you are all set by Punjab & Sind Bank under its own credit policy, and they differ materially between Member Institutions for an identical borrower. Nor does registration oblige Punjab & Sind Bank to lend: it appraises you on its normal credit standards first and applies the guarantee second. Approaching more than one Member Institution is almost always worth the effort.