# Equitas SFB may apply for universal banking licence in a year 2026-08-13T16:55:34+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Equitas Small Finance Bank plans to nearly treble its advances to Rs 1.2 lakh crore over five years, targeting 20 per cent annual growth, managing director and CEO P N Vasudevan told rediff.com. The bank expects its landed cost of money to fall from 8.2 per cent in March 2026 to below 7.5 per cent in five years, boosting its competitive edge. Equitas may apply for a universal banking licence within a year, Vasudevan said, adding that it is in touch with the RBI and will not rush. The bank has reduced microfinance's share to 10 per cent of its loan book and aims to cut informal and semi-formal borrowers' share from 90 per cent to 70-75 per cent over five years to lower risk. ## Coverage - rediff.com Tags: banking licence, Equitas, P N Vasudevan, RBI, small finance bank, universal bank Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/equitas-sfb-may-apply-for-universal-banking-licence-in-a-year/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/equitas-sfb-may-apply-for-universal-banking-licence-in-a-year/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.