IGI Logo

MUMBAI - India's Kotak Mahindra Bank on Saturday reported a 31% increase in standalone net profit for the October-December quarter, aided by a strong topline and healthy loan growth.

The private lender's standalone profit stood at 27.92 billion rupees ($344.2 million) compared with 21.31 billion rupees in the same period last year. Analysts were expecting a profit of 26.28 billion rupees, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Net interest income, the difference between interest earned and interest expended, rose 30.4% from a year ago to 56.53 billion rupees, while other income rose nearly 54%. The net interest margin was at 5.47% as compared to 4.62% last year.

The private lender’s advances grew by more than 23%, while deposits rose by nearly 13% year-on-year. The bank's current account and savings account (CASA) ratio was at 53.3% as on Dec. 31.

Indian banks are looking to fund the current pace of credit growth in the system by increasing their deposit base. Loans of Indian banks rose nearly 15% in the fortnight ending Dec. 30 compared to a year ago, while deposits rose only 9.2%, according to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India.

Kotak Mahindra Bank’s gross bad loans as a percentage of total loans – a key measure of asset quality – was at 1.90% at the end of December, from 2.08% at the end of September. The net non-performing assets ratio stood at 0.43% from 0.55% as on September-end.

The provision coverage ratio was at 77.6% as at December-end. As of Dec. 31, the bank held Covid-related provisions worth four billion rupees.