ICICI Bank Q3 net falls 19% to Rs 2,442 cr; bad loans rise

Gross non-performing loan ratio widens to 7.91%

ICICI Bank Ltd, country's No.2 lender by assets, said its third-quarter net profit fell 19% as bad loans rose, although the profit decline was smaller than expected.

Net profit fell to Rs 2,442 crore for the three months to Dec. 31, from Rs 3,018 crore reported a year earlier, the Mumbai-based lender said on Tuesday.

Bad loans as a percentage of total loans rose to 7.91% at the end of December, from 6.82% at the end of September and 4.72% a year ago.

Indian banks have been hit hard by the government's shock cancellation in November of 86% of the country's currency in circulation. The move sent many institutions scrambling to replace the high-value banknotes and weighed on other activities such as lending.

The banking sector, facing a March deadline for the clean up of sour assets, also continues to make high provisions.

ICICI's net interest income for the December quarter fell to Rs 5,363 crore from Rs 5,453 crore a year earlier.

Ahead of the results, ICICI Bank shares closed down 0.7% in a Mumbai market that fell 0.8%.