Role of promoting green banking towards sustainable development

State Bank of India (SBI) advances sustainable ‎finance through green banking (GB) initiatives, ‎including green pins, solar buildings, and green ‎remit cards. These practices reduced annual ‎paper consumption by 1,200 metric ‎tons (avoiding deforestation of ~20,000 trees) ‎and cut operational costs by 15% through ‎digitization (SBI Sustainability Report, 2023, p. ‎‎12). Carbon emissions fell by 28% (2020–‎‎2023), driven by solar-powered ATMs (1,200 ‎units installed) and paperless transactions (45 ‎million annually). Leveraging mixed methods, ‎this study analyzes GB’s benefits and customer ‎awareness using primary data from 50 SBI ‎customers (interviews) and secondary data ‎‎(reports, publications). Statistical analyses like ‎Garrett’s ranking, t-tests, ANOVA, and SEM ‎reveal that digital literacy moderates demographic ‎influences on GB adoption. Higher education ‎correlates with awareness, while age-education ‎interactions highlight adoption barriers. Gender ‎showed no significant impact. Findings ‎underscore SBI’s alignment with India’s net-zero goals but emphasize the need for targeted ‎education and cybersecurity measures. The ‎study bridges stakeholder theory with empirical ‎insights, demonstrating how banks can ‎harmonize profitability and environmental ‎responsibility. Results advocate scalable ‎policies, such as incentivizing green loans and ‎enhancing digital literacy, to mainstream GB ‎practices in emerging economies, offering a ‎blueprint for sustainable banking ‎transformation‎.