The Indian banking system was initially thought to be insulated from the global financial crisis owing to heavy public ownership and cautious management. It was thus a surprise when some banks experienced deposit flight, as depositors shifted their money toward government-owned banks and specifically toward the State Bank of India, the largest public bank. While there was some tendency for depositors to favour healthier banks and banks with more stable funding, the reallocation of deposits toward the State Bank of India cannot be explained by these factors alone. Rather it appears that the implicit government guarantee of the liabilities of the country’s largest public bank dominated other considerations.