Scam-hit PNB posts ₹4,532 crore loss in September quarter as bad loans soar

Fraud hit Punjab National Bank Friday posted a staggering loss of ₹4,532.35 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2018 on rising bad loans.

The state-owned bank had a net profit of ₹561 crore in the July-September quarter of last fiscal 2016-17.

Its total income during the September quarter of 2018-19 declined to ₹14,035.88 crore as against ₹14,205.31 crore in the year-ago period, PNB said in a BSE filing.

The bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) as a proportion of gross advances rose sharply to 17.16 per cent ( ₹81,250.83 crore) at the end of September, from 13.31 per cent ( ₹57,630.11 crore) a year ago.

As a result, provision for bad loans nearly tripled to ₹7,733.27 crore in the September quarter as against ₹2,693.78 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal.

Shares of PNB were trading 1.01 per cent lower at ₹73.50 apiece on BSE.

Earlier, in the June quarter, gross non-performing assets (NPAs) were at 18.26% against 13.66% in the year-ago period and 18.38% in the preceding quarter.

Net NPAs were 10.58% against 8.67% in the year-ago quarter and 11.24% in the preceding quarter.

The bank is still recovering from the fraud when Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi borrowed against LoUs fraudulently obtained from one of its branches in Mumbai.

with PTI inputs.