State Trading Corporation of India is a government-owned trading house that has stopped trading. Incorporated in 1956 to handle trade with Eastern Europe and boost Indian exports, it once moved everything from fertiliser and food grains to bullion and edible oils. Since November 2020, it has been a non-operative company - its business now is managing what it already owns, not buying or selling anything new.
Business segments
Two engines that no longer run, and one asset base that now generates all the income - a legacy trading operation that has been shut down, a residual monitoring function, and a portfolio of prime real estate that has become the company's sole source of revenue.
1. Real estate: the only engine still running
The company's income now comes entirely from renting out surplus office space in buildings it already owns - it is a property landlord, not a trader.
- Prime Delhi office tower - the company's flagship asset is Jawahar Vyapar Bhawan on Janpath, New Delhi, where its corporate office sits and from which it leases surplus space to others. The building was last valued at Rs 75,675 lacs based on current title, or Rs 2,61,183 lacs if the land were held on a perpetual lease.
- A housing colony stake - it holds a 50% share in a 32.33-acre housing colony on Aurbindo Marg, New Delhi, jointly allotted with MMTC, last valued at Rs 49,834 lacs for its half-share as of 31.03.2020.
- Other properties held for sale - the portfolio also includes a tank farm at Mumbai Port (where the lease has expired and tanks have been handed back), seven residential apartments in Mumbai, and other properties last valued at Rs 29,652 lacs (as part of a total fair value of Rs 1,55,161 lacs based on current title as per the last valuation report). Since April 2021, all property, plant, and equipment have been classified as "held for disposal" and carried at estimated realisable values, with no depreciation charged.
- Rental income is the lifeline - rental income was Rs 49.51 crore in FY20 and had grown to Rs 104.66 crore by FY25, making it the company's primary source of revenue now that trading has ceased.
2. Historical trading: the engine that was switched off
STC was a commodity trader that bought and sold fertilisers, food grains, metals, and bullion on its own account or as an agent - but all trading stopped in November 2020.
- Three channels, one model - the company operated across Exports, Imports, and Domestic segments, acting either as a principal carrying inventory or as an agent charging a fixed margin on transactions it facilitated. Revenue was recognised when goods were delivered and risks transferred to the buyer.
- Bullion dominated the final years - in FY20, its last active year, gold and silver imports alone accounted for nearly 86% of total turnover, while it also imported equipment for state governments and supplied edible oils, pulses, and sugar to Tamil Nadu's public distribution system.
- A model that ran out of money - by its final years, the company was financially distressed, with negative net worth, choked bank credit lines, and its accounts declared non-performing assets by lenders, so it shifted to serving only government departments where its own funds were not required.
- The shutdown was formal and immediate - on 10 November 2020, the Board resolved to cease all business activities except completing contracts already in hand, and from FY22 onwards accounts have been prepared on a non-going concern basis with nil turnover.
3. Counter trade monitoring: the residual obligation
The one operational activity that survives is tracking reciprocal trade commitments made with foreign counterparties, done at the direction of the Commerce Ministry.
- A legacy government function - STC monitors counter trade obligations - historical arrangements where India committed to reciprocal purchases or sales with other countries - and ensures compliance on behalf of the Government of India.
- No new business, just oversight - this is purely an administrative monitoring role; the filings disclose no details on the volume, value, or counterparties of these obligations.
Group structure and partners
STC is 90% owned by the Government of India and sits inside a small group with one subsidiary in winding-up, a few fully impaired investments, and a lender consortium that has now been fully settled.
- Government ownership and control - the President of India holds 90% of equity, and the company operates under the administrative control of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry as a Schedule 'A' Central Public Sector Enterprise.
- A subsidiary being wound down - STCL Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary in Bangalore, has been in winding-up proceedings since 2013, with its net worth fully eroded and lender banks initiating debt recovery proceedings after it stopped servicing loans from FY19.
- Legacy investments, all impaired - the company holds small stakes in entities like NSS Satpura Agro Development, Sea Lac Agro Ventures, and Maharashtra Small Scale Industries Development, all fully impaired, while it also holds a nominal Rs 0.01 crore investment in Andhra Pradesh Trade Promotion Corporation and a nominal value investment in Sindhu Resettlement, both unimpaired.
- Lender consortium fully settled - a six-bank consortium led by Canara Bank was formed in November 2018; STC completed a One Time Settlement, paying Rs 1,100 crore initially and a further Rs 200 crore in July 2025, receiving no-dues certificates from all six lenders.