IndusInd Q4 net rises 3.5 times

Helped by improved interest margins and healthy growth in fee-based income, the Hinduja Group-promoted IndusInd Bank On Tuesday said its net profit rose nearly three-and-a-half times to Rs 50.52 crore during the quarter ended March, 2009, compared with Rs 14.45 crore during the fourth quarter of 2007-08.

During January-March, net interest income — or the difference between revenue from advances and the cost of funds — increased by 66 per cent to Rs 144.28, against Rs 86.97 crore during the corresponding period in the previous year.

Net interest margin rose to 2.48 per cent from 1.64 per cent. The lender also managed to reduce its net non-performing assets to 1.14 per cent of total advances from 2.27 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.

During 2008-09, the lender’s net profit nearly doubled to Rs 148.34 crore from Rs 75.05 crore in the previous financial year. Operating profit rose 88 per cent to Rs 368.26 crore compared with Rs 196.19 crore in the previous year. The percentage of current accounts and savings accounts in total deposits also improved to 19.24 per cent as compared with 15.70 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.

IndusInd Bank’s commercial vehicles portfolio, which accounts for about 60 per cent of the lender’s consumer finance division, shrank 4.3 per cent over the past financial year to Rs 4,164 crore.

Romesh Sobti, managing director and chief executive officer, said this was because the market offtake for commercial vehicles had shrunk. “However, the market for commercial vehicles is now coming back and we are looking to grow this portfolio,” he added.

The lender’s capital adequacy ratio as on March 31, 2009 was 12.33 per cent and Sobti said the bank had no intention of raising Tier-1 capital, or equity capital, in the near future.

He, however, added that the lender was planning to raise capital through a subordinated debt issue either at the end of the current quarter or the beginning of the next quarter.