CCI approves SMBC's stake buy in Yes Bank

India's competition regulator said on Tuesday it had approved Japanese bank Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's stake purchase in Indian lender Yes Bank .

SMBC in May had inked a deal to take a 20% stake in Yes Bank for $1.6 billion, making it the largest cross-border merger and acquisition deal in India's financial sector.

The Japanese lender had agreed to buy a 13.19% stake from State Bank of India and an aggregate 6.81% stake from Axis Bank, Bandhan Bank, Federal Bank , HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC First Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. In August, SMBC received the Reserve Bank of India's approval to buy up to a 24.99% stake in Yes Bank.

The Indian central bank also decided that SMBC will not be treated as Yes Bank's "promoter" - an Indian term for large shareholders - following the deal, Yes Bank had disclosed in an exchange filing.

The deal would have involved additional regulatory requirements if SMBC was considered a promoter.