HDFC Bank's profit up 20 percent in third quarter

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - HDFC Bank, India's biggest lender by market value, reported a 20.31 percent rise in third-quarter net profit on Saturday, lifted by higher interest and fee income.

Net profit rose to a record 55.86 billion Indian rupees ($785 million) for the three months to Dec. 31, from 46.43 billion rupees a year ago, the bank said.

Asset quality was stable, with gross bad loans as a percentage of total loans at 1.38 percent by the end of December, compared to 1.33 percent in the previous quarter and 1.29 percent in the same period last year.

Loans have grown at a quicker pace at private-sector banks, which have grabbed market share from state-controlled lenders that carry the majority of bad loans in India.

HDFC Bank's total loans at the end of December were 7.81 trillion rupees ($110 billion), with retail loans up 24.0 percent.

Its relatively small exposure to the troubled infrastructure sector, which has forced other banks to make profit-denting provisions, has helped HDFC Bank maintain stable asset quality.

Net interest income climbed 21.9 percent, while net interest margin was at 4.3 percent for the quarter.

($1 = 71.2000 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar; Editing by Alexander Smith)