Standard Chartered Plc is set to become the settlement bank for real-time dollar-denominated trades in GIFT City, India's emerging financial hub.

The Clearing Corp. of India Ltd. plans to begin testing the new settlement system in January and aims to launch the service in April, following successful trials among various bank units in the region.

This development is in response to the growing interest in India from foreign investors, particularly with the inclusion of Indian sovereign bonds in global indexes. The establishment of a dedicated settlement bank is expected to improve transaction efficiency and meet the increasing demand from international investors.