Skip to main content

Gross NPAs of listed banks swell to Rs 5.8 lakh crore

The gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of listed banks jumped to Rs 5.81 lakh crore in March from around Rs 3 lakh crore a year ago. Corporate loans dominated the bad loan accounts in FY16, according to data from Capitaline compiled by Business Standard's research bureau.
Analysts and bank executives said the asset quality review (AQR) by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) across banks in 2015-16 helped get a realistic assessment of stress in the system. This led to a sharp rise in provisions for NPAs, denting bottom line at a time when interest income remained subdued.
Now, banks face the challenge of net NPAs, for which provisions are yet to be made. Vibha Batra, head of financial sector ratings at ICRA, said banks might not see repeat of large-scale slippages like last year. They, however, have a daunting task of making provisions for bad loans in the coming quarters. There is also the risk the agriculture sector showing stress in 2017. Farming activity has been hit due to bad monsoon in the past two years.
According to State Bank of India chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya, the entire impact of AQR they have taken into account. In the third quarter of FY16, there have been slippages of Rs 21,000 crore. Of this, the share of AQR was Rs 14,000 crore. In the fourth quarter, there were slippages of Rs 30,000 crore, with AQR accounting for Rs 9,000 crore.
"As much as Rs 20,000 crore worth of slippages have come from large corporate accounts. This is because several large accounts were not on our AQR list but on other banks AQRs," Bhattacharya said.
Gross NPAs of listed banks swell to Rs 5.8 lakh crore Elaborating on the AQR exercise, S S Mundra, deputy governor of RBI, had said last month that the signs of rising stress in the banking system became increasingly evident in the years beginning 2012.
The stressed assets comprising gross NPAs, restructured standard assets and written-off accounts for the banking system as a whole grew substantially. Stressed assets, 9.8 per cent of the total at the end of March 2012 moved up sharply to 14.5 per cent by December 2015. During the same period, the stressed assets for public-sector banks swelled from 11 per cent to 17.7 per cent. Global economy is passing through a difficult phase and vulnerabilities remain. So, in a globally integrated economy, a general decline in the asset quality was not totally unexpected, Mundra had said.
Business Standard New Delhi, 28th May 2016

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Govt’s gamble on GST cuts: What do the bond and currency markets signal?

  It’s not just humans who suffer from cognitive biases; markets do too. Interestingly, different financial markets exhibit distinct biases, each interpreting events through its own prism of prejudice. Take the recent announcements on GST reforms: equity markets have chosen to view them through the lens of growth, while bond and currency markets are focusing on potential macroeconomic risks—fiscal pressures and current account challenges. So, which lens captures the true pulse?Equity markets may be right in expecting GST reforms to revive consumption, which has remained lacklustre for a while. But the key question remains—will this revival come at the cost of broader macro stability?It is well known that consumption stocks have rallied since the GST rationalisation announcement. But what about bond markets? What signals are they sending since this rejig was announced from the ramparts of the Red Fort?The signs aren't encouraging. Bond prices have slumped and yields have surged sinc...

Luxury carmakers urge clarity on GST rates to boost festive season sales

  A clear picture regarding new GST rates at the earliest will help the overall auto industry, including the luxury car segment, to regain momentum in the ongoing quarter, which generally sees enhanced sales on account of the festive season.The high-powered GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will meet on September 3-4 to discuss moving to a two-slab taxation.In an interaction with PTI, BMW Group India President and CEO Hardeep Singh Brar said the recent speculation about the change in GST rates has caused uncertainty in the minds of consumers.Consumer interest and demand is strong, but they (prospective buyers) have adopted a wait-and-watch approach, and this delayed decision-making is impacting new vehicle sales at a certain level, he noted."Expediting clarity on GST rates is essential to get back to speed and ensure the auto sector's contribution to economic growth during this quarter is robust," Brar stated.He also hoped that the sustainable p...

Sebi proposes tighter norms for green bond third-party reviewers

  Sebi on Friday said it has proposed to tighten the norms to appoint independent third-party reviewers or certifiers for green debt securities to align them with requirements for other ESG-linked bonds.In a draft circular, Sebi said that the current norms for green bonds, introduced in February 2023, lack detailed requirements around reviewer independence, conflict of interest mitigation, and disclosure standards that are now in place for other ESG-linked securities under a June 2025 circular.The regulator's latest proposal seeks public comments on a revised framework that would bring parity by incorporating comprehensive criteria for third-party certifiers of green bonds on non-convertible securities.Under the proposed norms, issuers of green debt securities will need to appoint reviewers who are independent of their management, directors, and key managerial personnel. These reviewers will be remunerated in a way that prevents any conflicts of interest and possess relevant expert...