Equitas SFB Q3 profit jumps 51% to Rs 94 crore

Kolkata: Equitas Small Finance Bank, which is in the process of making an initial public offer, has reported 51% rise in profit at Rs 94 crore for December quarter compared with Rs 62 crore in the year ago period.

Net interest income grew by 23% to Rs 384 crore, while advances grew 37% to Rs 14,615 crore.

The lender's micro finance portfolio has now come to 23% as it is focusing more on small business loan and vehicle finance.


Micro finance grew 19% year-on-year to Rs. 3,504 crore, small business loans including home loans grew 45% to Rs 5,930 crore and vehicle finance grew 32% to Rs 3,587 crore. Its other two verticals are MSE finance and corporate loans.

PN Vasudevan, managing director of Equitas Small Finance Bank, said that the microfinance business saw repayment trouble in pockets of Maharashtra while business in Karnataka has been doing fine. Equitas is not present in Assam, where repayment issues has spoilt the market.

The company's gross non-performing assets ratio was at 2.86% as compared with 3.14% a year back.

Vasudevan said that Reserve Bank of India has allowed it to open 12 branches earlier this month even as there has been regulatory barrier on opening branches without prior permission for failing to llst the bank within the deadline of September last year.