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If you are an Indian or an NRI living in the United States, it is natural to assume that your bank back home has a branch somewhere nearby. SBI, ICICI, HDFC, and Bank of Baroda are household names in India, so a US branch feels likely.
The reality is narrower than most articles suggest. A handful of Indian banks do operate in the US, but their offices are mostly built for corporate clients, trade finance, and correspondent banking, not for walk-in retail customers. Some banks have no US presence at all. And several of the “branches” listed online are actually representative offices, which cannot hold your money.
This guide explains who is actually present, what type of presence each bank has, and what you can realistically do at each one.
According to the Reserve Bank of India’s data on overseas offices of Indian banks, five Indian banks operate in the United States. Between them, they run eight branches, one banking subsidiary, and three representative offices.
Those four words matter, so here is what each one means:
| Bank | Type of US presence | Number of US offices |
| State Bank of India | Branches, plus a wholly owned US subsidiary and a representative office | 3 branches, 1 subsidiary (7 branches), 1 rep office |
| Bank of India | Branch and agency | 2 |
| ICICI Bank | Branch, plus representative offices | 1 branch, rep offices |
| Bank of Baroda | Branch | 1 |
| Canara Bank | Branch | 1 |
Figures reflect RBI’s published overseas-office data as of 31 December 2024, cross-checked against each bank’s own US website in 2026. Networks change, so confirm with the bank before you travel to an office.
Here is the same picture at the location level.
| Bank | City | Type of office | Practical note |
| State Bank of India | New York, NY | State-chartered, FDIC-insured branch | Largest US presence of any Indian bank |
| State Bank of India | Chicago, IL | State-chartered, FDIC-insured branch | Serves the Midwest |
| State Bank of India | Los Angeles, CA | Wholesale banking branch, not FDIC insured | Corporate and large-value business |
| State Bank of India | Washington, DC | Representative office | Liaison only, no accounts |
| SBI California | 7 locations across California | Separate US bank owned by SBI | Full US retail and business banking |
| ICICI Bank | New York, NY | Branch | Corporate banking and trade finance |
| ICICI Bank | Sunnyvale, CA and Plano, TX | Representative offices | Support and information, no deposits |
| Bank of Baroda | New York, NY | Branch, member FDIC | Corporate, correspondent banking, remittances |
| Bank of India | New York, NY | Branch | Corporate and trade business with India |
| Bank of India | San Francisco, CA | Agency | West Coast corporate relationships |
| Canara Bank | New York, NY | Branch | Opened in 2014, India-linked business |
You may also see Kotak Mahindra listed as having a New York office. RBI’s overseas-office data does not show a Kotak bank branch in the United States, so any US entity in that group is not the bank itself. Treat such listings with care.
SBI has the widest US footprint, but its offices are not all the same thing.
New York and Chicago are state-chartered, FDIC-insured branches. These are the two SBI offices in the US where deposit business is done under US insurance. The New York branch was established in 1971.
Los Angeles operates as a wholesale banking branch and is not FDIC-insured. It handles corporate and large-value business rather than everyday personal banking.
Washington, DC is a representative office. It exists to liaise, gather information, and support relationships. You cannot open or operate an account there.
SBI California is a different animal altogether. It is a California state-chartered bank, founded in 1982 and wholly owned by SBI, with its head office in downtown Los Angeles. For most NRIs in California, this is the more useful option, because it functions as a regular American bank.
SBI California’s seven branches:
| Region | Branch |
| Southern California | Los Angeles, Cerritos, Woodland Hills, San Diego |
| Central California | Fresno |
| Northern California | Fremont, Sunnyvale |
SBI California offers checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, business lending, safe deposit boxes at several branches, and a remittance service for sending money to India and Bangladesh. NRI services and life certificate attestation are available at its branches by prior appointment only, so call before going.
One caution: some directories still list an SBI office in Jackson Heights, Queens. SBI’s own US website currently lists only New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and the Washington, DC, representative office. Check the bank’s site before planning a visit.
ICICI Bank has one branch in the United States, in New York. It is not a retail bank. The New York branch focuses on corporate clients and growing businesses with India links, including trade finance.
Alongside it, ICICI runs representative offices, including Sunnyvale in California and Plano in Texas. ICICI states plainly that these representative offices are not chartered banks or depository institutions and cannot accept deposits or trust accounts. They exist to answer questions and support customers with ICICI’s India-based products.
So if you are a US-based NRI wanting an NRE or NRO account with ICICI, that account sits with ICICI Bank in India. The US offices can help you with information and paperwork, but the account itself is Indian.
ICICI also runs Money2India, its online service for sending funds from the US to India. The bank reports that the service has operated for over 20 years and has served more than 1.5 million customers.
Bank of Baroda has a single US branch, located at One Park Avenue in New York. It is a member of the FDIC.
The branch handles US dollar certificates of deposit, business checking accounts, advances, correspondent banking, and remittances to India. It also provides document attestation, verification, and certification, which carry service charges.
There is one important limitation that Bank of Baroda states on its own US website. US banking regulations do not allow its US operations to open, close or operate NRI accounts. Those accounts are offered by the bank’s branches in India, are domiciled in India, are not covered by FDIC insurance, and are not supervised by US regulators. The New York branch can attest your documents and help you send money into an NRI account you hold in India, but the account has to be opened with the Indian side of the bank.
Bank of Baroda also reminds US customers that American tax rules require income from all sources, including foreign accounts, to be reported, and that certain foreign accounts controlled by US taxpayers must be reported annually. Speak to a tax professional about your own situation.
No. HDFC Bank has no branch and no representative office in the United States.
HDFC Bank’s overseas network sits elsewhere, with branches in locations such as Bahrain, Hong Kong, Singapore and the UAE, and representative offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Nairobi and London. The US is not on either list.
This surprises people, because HDFC is India’s largest private sector bank and heavily markets NRI accounts to US residents. Those services are delivered digitally. A US-based NRI can open and run an HDFC NRE or NRO account online, use net banking and mobile banking, and reach a dedicated NRI helpline. What you cannot do is walk into an HDFC branch in the US, because there isn’t one.
Availability varies a lot between an FDIC-insured subsidiary and a representative office. Broadly, the services fall into these groups:
| Service | Full branch or US subsidiary | Agency | Representative office |
| Open a US deposit account | Usually yes | Limited | No |
| FDIC insurance on deposits | Yes, where the office is FDIC insured | Varies | Not applicable |
| Open an NRE or NRO account on the spot | Generally no, these are India-domiciled | No | No |
| Help with NRI forms and attestation | Yes | Often | Yes |
| Send money to India | Yes | Usually | Information only |
| Corporate and trade finance | Yes | Yes | No |
This is the single most useful distinction to understand before you make a trip.
| Branch | Representative office | |
| Legal status | Licensed banking office under US regulators | Not a chartered bank or depository institution |
| Can hold your deposits | Yes | No |
| Can open accounts | Yes, subject to its licence | No |
| Typical purpose | Corporate banking, trade finance, deposits where permitted | Liaison, marketing, customer information |
| What you can do there | Actual banking transactions | Ask questions, collect forms, get guidance |
A representative office is genuinely useful if you want a person to look over your NRI account forms or explain a product. It is not useful if you expect to deposit a cheque.
No. A branch visit is rarely necessary for a remittance today.
Most US-based NRIs send money to India through online services offered by banks or by specialist transfer providers, and never enter a branch. The Indian banks themselves push this route: ICICI has Money2India, SBI California has its own online remittance service, and Bank of Baroda offers remittance registration for individuals who send money regularly.
If you are weighing up options for money transfer, the practical comparison points are the exchange rate margin, the transfer fee, how long the money takes to arrive, transfer limits, and whether the recipient account is with the same bank. Bank branch access rarely changes the answer. Many NRIs comparing international money transfers find that the exchange rate margin matters more than the headline fee, because it is less visible.
Tax is a separate question from where you bank. Money sent to India by an NRI is not automatically taxable, and the treatment depends on the purpose of the transfer and the residency of the people involved rather than on which bank moves it. If you want to understand how the rules work, read up on remittance tax in India before assuming anything. Transfers in the other direction work differently again, since foreign remittance from India is governed by its own limits and tax collection rules.
Work through these points rather than picking the brand you know best:
A short check before you travel saves a wasted afternoon:
State Bank of India, Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Bank of Baroda, and Canara Bank. SBI also owns a separate US bank, SBI California.
Yes, but the network is small. There are around eight branches in total, concentrated in New York, plus SBI’s California subsidiary and a few representative offices.
Three branches operate directly: New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. There is also a representative office in Washington, DC, and SBI California, a subsidiary with seven branches.
New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, with the Washington, DC, representative office and SBI California branches in Los Angeles, Cerritos, Woodland Hills, San Diego, Fresno, Fremont and Sunnyvale.
ICICI Bank has one US branch in New York, focused on corporate banking and trade finance. Its other US offices are representative offices and cannot accept deposits.
Yes, one branch in New York at One Park Avenue. It is a member of the FDIC and handles deposits, correspondent banking, and remittances.
No. HDFC Bank has no branch or representative office in the United States. Its NRI services for US residents are delivered online.
Yes. Most Indian banks let US-based NRIs open and operate NRE and NRO accounts online without visiting a branch. The account is held in India.
Yes. Indian banks with US offices offer remittance services, and several run dedicated online transfer platforms. Compare the total cost against other providers before choosing.
A branch is a licensed banking office that can hold deposits and do banking business. A representative office is a liaison office that cannot accept deposits or open accounts, and exists to provide information and support.
Indian banks are present in the United States, but not in the way most people expect. A few full branches, one retail subsidiary in California, a small number of representative offices, and a large gap where HDFC Bank would be. What matters is matching the office type to what you actually need, and checking the bank’s own site before you rely on a listing.
For most day-to-day needs, branch locations aren’t the deciding factor. They are account access, transfer speed, total cost, and documentation. If cross-border payments are the reason you were searching, it is worth comparing how Remittor handles money transfers between the US and India alongside whatever your bank offers.
