Net Profit Rises 59%, Asset Quality Improves

Private sector lender ICICI Bank Ltd saw its net profit rise 59%, as core income rose and provisions fell.

Net profit for the January-March quarter stood at Rs 7,019 crore, as compared with Rs 4,403 crore a year ago. Analysts polled by Bloomberg estimated a profit of Rs 6,402.5 crore for the fourth quarter.

Net interest income, or core income, rose 21% year-on-year to Rs 12,605 crore. Other income, too, rose 15% from a year ago to Rs 4,737 crore.

The bank’s asset quality position improved with gross non-performing asset ratio fell by 53 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 3.6%. Net NPA ratio too dropped to 0.76%, down 9 basis points.

The gross NPA additions were Rs 4,204 crore during the quarter, compared to Rs 4,018 crore in the October-December quarter. Recoveries and upgrades of NPAs, excluding write-offs and sale, increased to Rs 4,693 crore from Rs 4,209 crore in the third quarter.

Provisions for the quarter stood at Rs 1,069 crore, down 63% year-on-year. The bank set aside additional Covid-related provisions worth Rs 1,025 crore on a prudential basis during the quarter, said Sandeep Batra, executive director, ICICI Bank.

“It is difficult to say when we can retire these Covid provisions. We will continue to do quarterly assessments of the portfolio to see if we need to continue holding these provisions,” he said.