e-commerce
MSME mission gets a BoB boost as SIDBI and Bank of Baroda join forces
MUMBAI: India’s small businesses just got a big lift and this time, the push comes from a power-packed partnership built for a Viksit Bharat 2047. In a significant move to strengthen the nation’s enterprise backbone, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and Bank of Baroda (BoB) have signed an MoU to turbocharge credit flow, expand working capital access, and bolster support for MSMEs and startups across India.
The agreement, sealed in the presence of M. Nagaraju, IAS, secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS), brings together the precision of SIDBI’s MSME-focused financing and Bank of Baroda’s expansive national and global footprint.
Senior leaders, including JS Manoj Ayyappan, SIDBI CMD Manoj Mittal, and BoB executive directors Lalit Tyagi and Lal Singh, were present as the two institutions outlined a collaborative roadmap to fuel India’s next wave of business growth.
The MoU deepens cooperation across a wide spectrum of enterprise needs:
● Joint Financing: Leveraging SIDBI’s expertise and BoB’s nationwide branch network to amplify credit delivery for MSMEs.
● Working Capital Enablement: Operationalising BoB’s digital Working Capital Platform for SIDBI-sanctioned borrowers, promising seamless and tech-enabled access to capital.
● Startup Financing: Combining SIDBI’s Venture Debt Programme with BoB’s specialised startup banking solutions ranging from advisory to tailored financial products.
● Export Promotion: Using Bank of Baroda’s international presence to help MSMEs and startups tap global markets with improved export banking support.
● Cluster & Innovation Support: Joint initiatives for MSME clusters, incubators and accelerators to nurture entrepreneurship across India.
Calling the collaboration a milestone, secretary M. Nagaraju noted, “This partnership brings together the strengths of a dedicated MSME development institution and a large commercial bank to build a stronger credit ecosystem. By combining SIDBI’s innovative financing models with Bank of Baroda’s reach, this MoU will help enterprises access timely working capital, scale operations, and integrate into global value chains.”
JS Manoj Ayyappan added that the partnership “significantly enhances access to timely and affordable credit,” describing it as a crucial step in reinforcing India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
For SIDBI CMD Manoj Mittal, the MoU marks a natural extension of the bank’s 35-year legacy.
“This MoU deepens our ability to jointly support MSMEs and high-potential startups through venture debt, digital credit, and coordinated working capital solutions,” he said. “We see this as a powerful opportunity to accelerate India’s enterprise growth narrative.”
Echoing this, BoB executive director Lalit Tyagi highlighted the bank’s growing commitment to emerging businesses, “Through this partnership, we will strengthen joint financing, enhance digital credit enablement, and expand specialised banking solutions. Our global presence will further help MSMEs and startups tap export opportunities.”
BoB’s executive director Lal Singh extended thanks to both teams, noting that the partnership sets the stage for “meaningful value creation for customers.”
As part of the event, the DFS Secretary handed over sanction letters to MSME customers, marking the beginning of a partnership expected to reach thousands of enterprises.
With SIDBI’s developmental sharpness and BoB’s vast reach, the collaboration signals a decisive push to ensure that India’s MSMEs and startups don’t just survive, they scale, innovate, and step confidently into global markets.
For a sector often described as the heart of India’s economy, the SIDBI–BoB handshake promises exactly what MSMEs have long needed: more credit, more confidence, and more room to grow.
MUMBAI: From flights to tracks, Cleartrip is now trying to keep every journey on the same ticket. Cleartrip, part of Flipkart, has launched train ticket bookings through a partnership with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, marking its entry into India’s vast rail travel ecosystem.
The integration allows users to search, book and manage train journeys directly within the app, as the company pushes towards becoming a unified, multi-modal travel platform. The move plugs Cleartrip into one of the world’s largest transportation networks, where over 800 million reserved passengers travel annually, alongside a daily footfall of around 23 million across Indian Railways.
The offering includes bookings across routes nationwide, covering General and Tatkal quotas as per Ministry of Railways guidelines. Users can also access real-time seat availability, fare insights, PNR status tracking, berth preferences and digital payment options within a single interface.
The expansion reflects a broader shift in travel platforms from specialising in a single mode to stitching together end-to-end journeys. For Cleartrip, the bet is not just on scale, but on simplifying a system often seen as complex and fragmented.
Company executives said the focus is on embedding predictive intelligence and personalisation into the booking journey, aiming to make everything from discovery to post-booking support faster and more intuitive.
The train booking feature is currently live on the app, with plans to extend it to the web platform soon, signalling a push towards a seamless cross-platform experience.
In a country where railways move billions each year, the next battleground for travel apps may well be decided not in the skies, but on the tracks.
