Bandhan Bank Q1 profit slumps 32% as provisions climb, NPAs soar

Bandhan Bank’snet profit for the first quarter through June 2021 dropped 32%, dragged down by a 62%jump in provisions to cover for potential non-performing assets.

The private-sector bank posted a net profit of Rs 373.1 crore for the April-June period compared with Rs 549.8 crore a year earlier.

Net interest income—the difference between interest earned and paid—rose 16.7% to Rs 2,114.1 crore while the net interest margin expanded to 8.5% from 8.2% a year earlier.

The bank’s provisions to cover for potential NPAs jumped to Rs 1,375 crore from Rs 849 crore in the corresponding period of the last financial year.

Other key details:

1. Operating profit for Q1 grew 18% from a year earlier to Rs 1,871 crore.

2. Total advances grew 8.1% to Rs 80,356.9 crore;total deposits increased 27.6% to Rs 77,335.5 crore.

3. Gross NPAs as on June 30 were Rs 6,440.4 crore while net NPAs came in at Rs 2,457.9 crore.

4. Gross NPA ratio jumped to 8.2% from just 1.4% a year earlier; net NPAs rose to 3.3% from 0.5%.

5. The bank’s capital adequacy ratio is at 24.8%, above the minimum norm of 15%.

Management commentary:

Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, Managing Director and CEO of Bandhan Bank, said the lender delivered the “best-ever quarter” in terms of operational performance in spite of the challenging environment due to the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Collections continue to improve with Covid restrictions getting relaxed. Typically, the second half of the financial year is always better for the bank in terms of growth and collections. With easing of Covid second wave and upcoming festive season, we are confident of achieving better performance going forward,” he said.