Public sector banks delivered another robust performance in the March quarter, driven by the rise in net interest income, significant growth in advances, expansion in net interest margins, and fall in provisions.
So far, 11 out of 12 PSU banks have reported their March quarter numbers. Notably, eight of these banks have achieved a remarkable surge of over 50% in their net profits.
Leading the pack is Bank of Baroda, which has demonstrated the highest net profit growth among its peers.
The bank on May 16 reported a 168% YoY rise in its net profit to ₹4,775 crore for Q4FY23. In the same quarter of last year, the bank had reported a net profit of ₹1,779 crore. During the preceding December quarter, the bank recorded a net profit of ₹3,853 crore.
The bank's net interest income during the reporting quarter showed a significant improvement, expanding by 33.8% YoY to ₹11,525 crore, while its net interest margin improved to 3.53% from 3.07% in the year-ago quarter.
Bank of Maharashtra, which kicked off the PSU bank Q4 earnings season on April 24, reported a stellar over 130% jump in Q4FY23 net profit to ₹840 crore from ₹355 crore registered in the same quarter of last year.
Similarly, Bank of India also delivered a 122.77% rise in Q4 net profit to ₹1,350 crore as compared to a net profit of ₹606 crore in Q4 FY22. The bank ended FY23 with a net profit of ₹4,023 crore, a growth of 18.14% over FY22's net profit of ₹3,405 crore.
In a similar fashion, Union Bank of India reported a 93.19% YoY increase in standalone net profit in Q4 at ₹2,782 crore, up from ₹1,440 crore in the same quarter last year.
On May 8, Canara Bank reported a 90.57% jump in March quarter net profit to ₹3,175 crore. The Bengaluru-based lender had reported a net profit of ₹1,666 crore in the year-ago period.
Central Bank of India posted an 84.19% jump in profit at ₹571 crore in Q4 FY23, helped by a rise in interest income and a decline in bad loans. Its net profit stood at ₹310 crore in the same quarter of the preceding financial year.
| Bank Name | Net Profit Growth (YoY) |
| Bank of Baroda | 168% |
| Bank of Maharashtra | 131% |
| Bank of India | 122% |
| Union Bank of India | 93% |
| Canara Bank | 90% |
| UCO Bank | 86% |
| Central Bank of India | 84% |
| State Bank of India | 83% |
The country's largest bank, State Bank of India (SBI), on Thursday reported another strong performance in the March quarter, beating its highest-ever quarterly net profit recorded in Q3 FY23.
In the previous December quarter, the bank achieved a net profit of ₹14,205 crore. However, in the latest quarter (Q4FY23), it showcased an even stronger performance, with a net profit of ₹16,695 crore, an increase of 17.52% QoQ and 83.17% YoY.
For the first time, the bank's net profit exceeded the 10,000-crore mark in Q2 FY23, and in the March quarter, it exceeded the 15,000-crore mark.
Furthermore, for the financial year ending March 2023, the bank's net profit crossed the 50,000-crore mark, reaching ₹50,232 crore, representing a substantial increase of 58.58%.
The bank's provisions (other than tax) and contingencies more than halved in Q4 to ₹3,316 crore from ₹7,237 crore in the year-ago period.
On the asset quality side, the bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) came down by 119 basis points YoY to 2.78%. Similarly, net NPAs dropped by 35 basis points from 1.02% to 0.67% in Q4 FY23.
Likewise, UCO Bank posted an 86% jump in its standalone net profit for the March quarter to ₹581 crore. The state-owned lender had posted a net profit of ₹312 crore in the year-ago quarter.
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