Ujjivan Small Finance Bank posted a strong March quarter performance, with net profit more than tripling year-on-year, aided by robust growth in interest income and easing stress in its loan book.
Profit for Q4FY26 came in at Rs 281.97 crore, sharply higher than Rs 83.39 crore reported in the corresponding quarter last year.
The bank’s core income remained healthy during the quarter, with net interest income rising 26.4 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,092.89 crore from Rs 864.31 crore, driven by steady expansion in advances.
Asset quality metrics continued to improve sequentially, with gross bad loans declining to 2.26 percent from 2.38 percent in the previous quarter. Net bad loans also moderated to 0.43 percent from 0.57 percent.
Credit costs eased further during the quarter, with provisions falling to Rs 143.85 crore, compared to Rs 195.34 crore in the December quarter and Rs 264.5 crore a year ago.
Ahead of the results announcement, shares of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank gained nearly 1.5 percent intraday to touch Rs 63.60 on the NSE.
Separately, the lender recently disclosed that the Reserve Bank of India had returned its application seeking voluntary transition into a universal bank.
The RBI, in its13 April communication, noted that while the bank had made progress in diversifying its loan portfolio, additional diversification was still required before reconsideration of the proposal. The regulator advised the bank to reapply at a later stage.
Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has a strong presence in microfinance along with exposure to affordable housing, retail lending and financial services targeted at underserved customer segments. |
