Karnataka Bank net profit rises 8% to Rs 146 crore in December quarter

Private sector Karnataka Bank reported an 8 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 146.42 crore for the quarter ended December 2021

Private sector Karnataka Bank on Friday reported an 8 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 146.42 crore for the quarter ended December 2021 on the back of a fall in provisions for bad loans and contingencies.

The bank had posted a net profit of Rs 135.37 crore in the same quarter a year ago.

Total income during the October-December period of 2021-22 was down at Rs 1,761.55 crore from Rs 1,878.74 crore in same quarter of 2020-21, Karanataka Bank said in a regulatory filing.

Gross non-performing assets (GNPA) ratio rose to 4.11 per cent from 3.16 per cent at the end of December 2020. However, it was down sequentially from 4.50 per cent in the quarter ended September 2021.

Net NPAs or bad loans too rose to 2.45 per cent from 1.74 per cent a year ago, but were lower than 2.84 per cent in the preceding quarter.

The bank put aside a lesser amount of Rs 138.50 crore to cover for bad loans and contingencies in Q3 FY22, compared to Rs 224.30 crore in Q3 FY21.

Karnataka Bank said its MD and CEO Mahabaleshwara M S has exercised 79,000 employee stock options (ESOPs) out of the 1,00,000 stock options vested in him under the KBL Employee Stock Options Scheme - 2018.

The resultant equity shares are allotted by the board of directors at the meeting held on Friday, it added.