Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon’ble Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Government of India, addressed Exim Bank’s Trade Conclave on the theme ‘Building Export-led Growth for Viksit Bharat’ on June 24, 2025, in New Delhi. In her keynote address, the Hon’ble Finance Minister outlined five major steps taken by the Government to empower Indian exporters and foster export-led growth. Firstly, there has been significant investments in transport and logistics, which is improving supply chain efficiency and global competitiveness. Secondly, MSMEs are being supported through key initiatives such as revision in definition of MSMEs, Udyam registration, revamp of Credit Guarantee Schemes, TReDS, and Exim Bank’s Ubharte Sitaare Programme. Under the Ubharte Sitaare Programme, Exim Bank has extended financial support of ₹ 1,522 crore, including 7 equity investments, to 85 entities identified as future champions. Additionally, technical assistance has been extended to incubators of IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIM Ahmedabad, IISc, Bangalore, IIM Lucknow and IIT Kanpur under the programme, for scaling up and nurturing early-stage companies. Thirdly, there is a focus on enhancing access to trade finance through platforms like ITFS and Exim Bank’s subsidiary in GIFT City, Exim Finserve, which is offering export factoring. During FY 2025, Exim Finserve provided export factoring for 587 open account trade transactions of exporters. Fourthly, cluster development for trade is being pursued under the Districts as Export Hubs initiative, enabling exporters to operate beyond SEZs and directly from their local districts. Finally, India is actively negotiating FTAs with several geographies, with the agreement with the USA also close to finalisation. Hon’ble Finance Minister also highlighted the role of Production-linked incentive scheme, with exports catalysed through the scheme exceeding ₹5.3 lakh crore.
The key milestones achieved under Exim Bank’s Trade Assistance Programme (TAP) were highlighted during the Conclave. In her keynote address, the Hon’ble Finance Minister, Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted that TAP is a first-of-its kind trade facilitation initiative in India, which is enabling Indian exporters to access high-risk markets by bridging the financing gaps. She highlighted that since TAP’s introduction in 2022, Exim Bank has established partnerships with over 100 overseas banks, facilitating over 1,100 export transactions across 51 countries.
During the event, Hon’ble Finance Minister virtually inaugurated Exim Bank’s new offices in Lucknow, Indore and São Paulo, Brazil, in the presence of Shri Pankaj Chaudhary, Hon’ble Minister of State for Finance and Shri M. Nagaraju, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance, Government of India. These offices will play a key role in supporting existing and aspiring exporters, and facilitating access to new markets.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Pankaj Chaudhary, Hon’ble Minister of State for Finance, highlighted the growing competitiveness of Indian exporters and measures undertaken by the Government of India for enhancing credit flow for Indian enterprises, particularly for MSMEs.
In his address, Shri. M. Nagaraju, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance highlighted that the financial system is firmly positioned to drive sustained economic growth and trade in Viksit Bharat. 
During the Conclave, Ms. Harsha Bangari, Managing Director, Exim Bank noted that support provided by the Bank has been a key enabler for Indian companies to scale up export capacities, move up the value chain and undertake complex project exports across various geographies. Speaking about the TAP, she added that the Bank has supported exporters under the programme across diverse sectors, based in 60 cities across 20 states, of which one-third are MSMEs. 
During the conclave, Hon’ble Finance Minister presented sanction letters to select SMEs being supported under the Ubharte Sitaare Programme. Exim Bank also exchanged a technical assistance agreement with IIT Kanpur for supporting high-potential startups.
Hon’ble Minister of State for Finance also released Exim Bank’s research publications titled ‘India’s Need to Secure Critical Minerals for Energy Transition’, ‘India’s Defence Equipment Industry: Exploring New Frontiers’ and ‘Textile & Allied Products Trade under ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement: Value Chain Analysis’. These studies offer insights on the recent dynamics in these sectors and outline strategies to enhance their export competitiveness. 
This event was attended physically and virtually by over 200 participants from the Indian industry, heads of banking/financial institutions, exporters, export promotion councils, and academia.