UP Co-operative Bank outpaces commercial lenders in loans, advances

Priority sector lender Uttar Pradesh Co-operative Bank (UPCB) has outpaced commercial banks in the growth of loans and advances in the state. 

 

UPCB has achieved a credit deposit (CD) ratio of over 72 per cent, higher than the overall banking sector’s CD of 61 per cent in UP. 

 

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the higher CD ratio of the lender showed that the state’s proactive steps towards last-mile financial inclusion were bearing fruits.

 

“There was a time when the co-operative banks were on the verge of closure, while the condition of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies was fragile before 2017,” he added. 

 

 

UPCB has around 40 branches in the state. It had business of around ₹25,500 crore in the financial year (FY) 2023-24 compared to ₹13,237 crore in FY17, a jump of more than ₹11,700 crore over eight years. The Yogi government had first come to power in the state in March 2017.

 

The net worth of the UPCB, which was roughly ₹870 crore in FY17, touched ₹1,407 crore in FY24, while deposits reached ₹11,415 crore.

 

UPCB, which extended loans worth ₹9,190 crore to various categories of borrowers, including farmers and self help groups in FY17, logged loans totalling ₹22,536 crore in FY24, thus growing by 240 percent over eight years.

 

The income of the bank increased from ₹808 crore in 2016-17 to ₹1,265 crore in FY24, while it clocked a net profit of ₹100 crore.

 

Currently, there are about 1,300 branches of different cooperative banks in UP, including UPCB, 50 District Co-operative Central Banks (DCCBs) and UP Sahkari Gram Vikas Bank.

 

The 50 DCCBs have the maximum branch network, with their total count coming up to 1,266.

 

The state government is looking to further strengthen co-operative banks to facilitate last-mile financial inclusion in rural areas. It recently infused fresh capital into 16 ailing DCCBs operating in Faizabad, Shravasti, Allahabad, Sitapur, Hardoi, Azamgarh, Fatehpur, Gorakhpur, Basti, Ballia, Siddharthnagar, Deoria, Sultanpur, Jaunpur, Ghazipur and Bahraich districts.