Citibank Net Rises 41% To Rs 285 Crore

Citibank NA has posted a 41 per cent increase in the net profit at Rs 285 crore for the year ended March 31, 2001, from its Indian operations. The bank's turnover also rose by 21 per cent to Rs 2,272 crore.

Announcing the results, Nanoo Pamnani, chief executive officer of Citibank India, said: "We continue to retain our competitive edge as the most profitable bank in the country, notwithstanding the consolidation that we are seeing in this segment."

The asset size of the balance sheet, as on March 31, 2001, was Rs 19,466 crore, thus putting the bank in the second slot among foreign banks in India.

While the deposits of the bank grew by 38 per cent to Rs 14,052 crore, advances also increased by 40 per cent to Rs 9273 crore.

The bank's net interest income during the year stood at Rs 772 crore, up 20 per cent, while the non-fund based income went up by 35 per cent to Rs 522 crore.

The operating expenses have also gone up by 20 per cent to Rs 601 crore.The capital adequacy ratio of the bank has increased from 10.62 per cent to 11.24 per cent, while the ratio of the net non-performing assets to net advances has also gone up from 0.70 per cent to 1.05 per cent.

The bank has launched various initiatives such as Suvidha, a scheme targeting the middle class in metros CitiBusiness Direct, for small- and medium-sized enterprises, and Citialert, an Internet- and mobile-based alert service for financial transactions. The bank has also securitised issuances aggregating over Rs 120 crore, rated triple A.