State Bank of India (SBI) stormed into India’s big league of market giants, overtaking IT bellwether Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to become the country’s fourth most valuable listed company by market capitalisation.
A powerful rally in PSU bank stocks, fuelled by SBI’s blockbuster Q3 results, has reshuffled the pecking order at the very top of Dalal Street. What was worse for TCS was that its recent battering also paved the way for ICICI Bank to edge past it, if the current trend continues.
India’s current top 5 by market cap
Based on the latest market data from major market trackers, the top five listed Indian companies (plus, ICICI Bank) by market capitalisation are:
1. Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) – around Rs 19.7–19.9 lakh crore
2. HDFC Bank Ltd – roughly Rs 14.2–14.5 lakh crore
3. Bharti Airtel Ltd – about Rs 11.4–11.5 lakh crore
4. State Bank of India (SBI) – near Rs 10.9–10.94 lakh crore after the latest rally
5. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) - around Rs 10.5–10.53 lakh crore
6. ICICI Bank Ltd – about Rs 10.1–10.2 lakh crore, slowly about to edge past TCS
Reports also noted that SBI first flipped TCS for the fourth spot, and ICICI Bank then also briefly overtook TCS as tech stocks came under pressure from worries over AI-led disruption and softer global IT spending.
On Thursday trade, TCS stock plunged more than 5 per cent before noon, while SBI gained more than 1 per cent and ICICI Bank appreciated by 1.5 per cent on the NSE.
How SBI climbed past TCS
SBI’s share price surged on the back of strong December-quarter earnings that beat market expectations, improved asset quality and upbeat commentary on credit growth. This rally brought SBI’s market cap in the Rs 10.9–10.94 lakh crore range, while TCS slumped to about ₹10.5–10.53 lakh crore when the flip first happened. This is the first time in around 15 years that SBI has moved ahead of the IT major.
At the same time, TCS has seen its valuation shaved off amid a global tech sell-off and investor nervousness about the pace and impact of generative AI on traditional IT services models. This combination of a PSU banking rally and IT de-rating pushed three banks—HDFC Bank, SBI and, potentially, ICICI Bank—into the top five club alongside Reliance and Airtel.
The latest rejig could also signal a broader shift towards domestically focused plays like banks and telecom, as investors bet on India’s credit cycle, capex recovery, and resilient consumer demand.
SBI’s latest rally is also a testament to how far India’s largest lender has come from its earlier bad-loan troubles to now command blue-chip premium status.