Sbi Q-3 Credit Portfolio Up Rs 1,800cr At Rs 61,480cr

The State Bank of Indias credit portfolio is estimated to have increased to Rs 61,480 crore by the end of the third quarter of the current fiscal, reflecting a growth of around Rs 1,800 crore.

According to a SBI official, there has been a pick up in credit off take since December. As on December 2, SBIs credit portfolio stood at Rs 58,080 crore. Since then, quick estimates show the increase in advances to be Rs 400 crore. In addition, the banks outstanding investments in bonds, debentures and commercial paper stood at over Rs 3,000 crore as on December 26.

 

The deposit base also continued to exhibit a healthy growth with aggregate deposits standing at Rs 1,11,011 crore on December 2. This reflects an increase by Rs 7,244 crore, a 6.98 per cent growth over March 31 levels. Investment by SBI in government securities has increased from Rs 45,712 crore in March to Rs 54,159 crore by December representing a 18.47 per cent growth. This is far in excess of the growth in deposits.

There has been a pick up in credit in the third quarter for the banking system as a whole, with advances increasing by Rs 14,431 crore during period September 26 to December 19 as against an increase of Rs 5,646 crore in the first half. The trend in case of SBI is also similar. While credit increased by Rs 2,569 crore in the first half, in the third quarter it is estimated to have gone up by around Rs 1,800 crore.

However, SBIs credit growth in comparison to the banking system is not very good. Considering that SBI constitutes over 20 per cent of the banking system, a third quarter growth of Rs 1800 crore when the total rise of the banking system is Rs 14,431 crore is not impressive. However, the situation brightens if one takes into consideration the investments in bonds and CP.

According to SBI officials, they have begun sanctioning funds to the infrastructure projects; power and telecom sector in particular. If the disbursements take place in the current fiscal, credit portfolio will get a boost.