HDFC Bank

Universal bank · Mumbai, India

HDFC Bank is India's largest private sector bank with 9,689 branches, 21,417 ATMs and about 211,000 employees after merging with parent HDFC Ltd in 2023. Its international network is five branches in Bahrain, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore plus an IFSC unit at GIFT City, with representative offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London and Nairobi. For merchants it runs the SmartHub Vyapar app with no setup or maintenance fee and charges only per card transaction. RBI fined the bank twice in 2025, and the Dubai regulator barred its DIFC branch from taking new clients in September 2025 over AT1 bond mis-selling claims.

Legal name: HDFC Bank Limited
Regulated by: Reserve Bank of India, Central Bank of Bahrain (Bahrain branch), DFSA (Dubai branch), HKMA (Hong Kong branch), IFSCA (GIFT City IBU)
Licence confirmed: yes, on a regulator's own list
Established: 1995
Website: www.hdfcbank.com

Scores, 0 to 10

8.0Latin America, Africa & South Asia

India's largest private bank with 9,689 branches, UPI, IMPS, NEFT and RTGS rails and a D-SIB designation from RBI. · source

7.0Financial strength & stability

Investment grade BBB from S&P and Baa3 from Moody's on 2026 notes, D-SIB status, but two RBI fines and a DFSA bar in 2025. · source

6.0Trade, manufacturing & import-export

Branches in Bahrain, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore plus GIFT City support LCs and trade credit for Indian importers and exporters. · source

6.0Business cards (Visa, Mastercard)

Commercial credit cards include Corporate Platinum, Corporate Premium, Purchase, Purchase Premium and Fleet cards with accounts payable and receivable programmes; network, fees and FX markup are not stated on the page. · source

5.5Online businesses: e-commerce and SaaS

SmartHub Vyapar accepts UPI, cards and QR payments for merchants with no maintenance fee, aimed at Indian MSMEs. An EEFC account in 21 currencies lets an Indian software exporter keep USD, EUR and GBP earnings, but RBI rules convert unused balances to INR at the end of the following month and no API or Stripe integration is offered. · source

5.0Cross-border payments, FX and multi-currency accounts

Overseas branches in four hubs and SWIFT cover rupee trade flows, but outward FX remittance margins are not published. GIFT City IFSC unit and four overseas branches allow foreign currency lending and accounts for Indian corporates, without global pooling. · source

5.0Lowest fees

SmartHub Vyapar merchant app has no setup or maintenance fee; current account balance tiers were not verified on the bank site. · source

5.0Customer satisfaction

RBI fined the bank three times during 2025 over KYC, a foreign investment breach and outsourcing, and the Dubai Financial Services Authority stopped its DIFC branch taking new clients in September 2025. · source

4.5Fast digital onboarding

SmartHub Vyapar lets merchants sign up in the app, while current accounts still need branch KYC under RBI rules. · source

4.5On-ramp: buy crypto with fiat

A July 2026 guide reports rupee transfers from HDFC to FIU-registered exchanges clear like any other payment, while HDFC credit cards have been declined at crypto merchants; in May 2021 HDFC told customers to justify crypto transfers and withdrew the warning after the RBI objected, and there is no published policy for business accounts. · source

4.0Asia-Pacific (SG, HK, AU, JP, KR)

Branches in Hong Kong and Singapore serve Indian corporates and trade flows; no local SME onboarding is offered in either hub. · source

4.0Fintech companies that need a partner bank

HDFC Bank partners with fintechs on cards and UPI in India but publishes no safeguarding or sponsor banking programme. · source

4.0Startups & VC-backed companies

Startups open regular current accounts with branch KYC; no venture debt or dedicated startup unit is published. · source

3.5Foreign-owned & non-resident companies

EEFC and current accounts are for foreign exchange earners resident in India; foreign companies are served only through the GIFT City IBU in USD, EUR, GBP and JPY. · source

3.5High-risk verticals (iGaming, cannabis, adult, forex)

No prohibited-industries policy for business accounts is published on the current account pages; scored conservatively. · source

3.0Middle East & Gulf

Bahrain and Dubai branches exist, but the DFSA barred the Dubai branch from taking new clients in September 2025. · source

2.5Best interest on business balances

Indian current accounts pay no interest and no business treasury sweep product is published. · source

1.5Crypto-friendly bank

HDFC Bank blocks its cards for crypto purchases and asked customers in 2021 to explain transfers to crypto exchanges. · source

1.0Crypto wallet and custody for a business

HDFC Bank sells no crypto and offers no custody or wallet through NetBanking, MobileBanking or its business channels, per a July 2026 guide and its own product pages, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Accept crypto payments

HDFC Bank's SmartGATEWAY merchant page covers cards, UPI and net banking with no crypto or stablecoin acceptance, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Bitcoin

HDFC Bank offers no bitcoin, custody or bitcoin ETF to any client, per the July 2026 guide, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Ethereum

HDFC Bank offers no ether, custody, staking or ether fund to any client, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Stablecoins (USDC, USDT and others)

HDFC Bank offers no stablecoin holding, payouts or conversion; its only digital currency product is the HDFC Bank Digital Rupee wallet for the RBI's e-rupee, a central bank digital currency rather than a stablecoin, checked September 2026. · source

Sources

Built on public information and the BankStore team's own aggregated experience; no confidential client or partner data. Bank Index and BankStore are not banks. This is information, not financial advice.