NEW DELHI: Private lender Kotak Mahindra Bank clocked a 32.8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) growth in net profit at Rs 1,682.4 crore in the quarter ended March 2021, aided by higher net interest income (NII), other income and pre-provision operating profit. The March quarter earnings, however, underperformed peers like ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank impacted by higher provisions.
Provisions and contingencies remained elevated at Rs 1,179.41 crore for the March quarter 2021, increasing 12.6 per cent compared to the year-ago quarter and 181.8 per cent when compared to the previous quarter. The bank further said that there was no fall in the Covid-19 provisions made during Q4 FY21, which were retained at Rs 1,279 crore.
Loan growth was also slow, both sequentially and annually. Advances came in at Rs 2.23 lakh crore, up 4.5 per cent from Rs 2.14 lakh crore as on December 31, 2020. On a year-on-year basis, it stood at Rs 2.19 lakh crore as on March 31, 2021, a growth of 1.76 per cent. Deposits, at Rs 2.8 lakh crore in the March quarter, grew by 6.6 per cent year-on-year, missing analysts' expectations of over 10 per cent growth. Meanwhile, the lender reported an 8 per cent growth in net interest income or core income at Rs 3,843 crore for the reported quarter. Other income rose 31 per cent to Rs 1,949 crore.
Managing director Uday Kotak said that he would remain the bank's chief at least until 2023. His comments come after the Reserve Bank of India restricted the tenure of promoter chief executives of private banks to 12 years. While the rules kick-in from this October, CEOs will be allowed to finish existing tenures. Kotak's current term ends in December 2023. On restructuring, he said, that loans worth Rs 121.5 crore were restructured under the RBI's one-time window.