IDFC Bank posts first net loss in Q2 since debut

Private sector IDFC Bank reported a net loss of Rs 369.69 crore for the September quarter due to higher provisioning even as the bank's bad loans came down.

The bank had posted a net profit of Rs 233.66 crore in the corresponding July-September period of 2017-18.Total income was at Rs 2,453.48 crore for the quarter, up from Rs 2,365.06 crore in the same period of preceding fiscal, the bank said in a regulatory filing.

There was an improvement in bank's asset quality during the September quarter of 2018-19 as the gross non-performing assets (NPAs) came down to 1.63 percent of the gross advances as against 3.92 percent a year ago.

The net NPAs, as a percentage of net loans, also reduced to 0.59 percent as on September 30, 2018 as against 1.61 percent earlier. In absolute terms, the gross NPAs (or bad loans) stood at Rs 894.50 crore as against Rs 2,001.54 crore. Net NPAs were Rs 321.18 crore as compared to Rs 804.99 crore

In spite of NPA ratios falling down substantially, the bank kept a higher provisioning and contingencies of Rs 601.38 crore for the July-September period of the current fiscal. However, there was a write-back of Rs 100.37 crore as provisions and contingencies in the same quarter of 2017-18.

Of the total provisions of nearly Rs 601.38 crore in second quarter, provision of Rs 344.48 crore is due to reclassification as per regulatory provisioning norms, Rs 197.13 crore is provision against investments including mark to market provisions in accordance with RBI guidelines, the bank said.