Lower provisioning for NPAs and higher net interest income lifted Vijaya Bank’s first quarter net profit by 54 per cent to Rs 111.36 crore.
The bank provided Rs 130 crore for NPAs this quarter compared with Rs 231 crore for the same period last year.
Total income for the quarter grew 18.8 per cent year on year to Rs 2,319.9 crore (Rs 1,953.4 crore).
Net interest margin grew 7.5 per cent at Rs 455 crore. The bank saw 23 per cent increase in interest income at Rs 2,197 crore.
Mr H.S. Upendra Kamath, Chairman and Managing Director, told a press conference on Wednesday, “Efforts made towards improving asset quality and containing the amount as well as the percentage of delinquent assets at below March 2012-levels paved the way for overall good numbers”. Containment, he said, was the key. It would target more recoveries from NPA- and written-off accounts and closely monitor the loans to check new delinquents.
Operating profit, however, was lower at Rs 258.87 crore (Rs 325.5 crore) but close to the January-March 2012 level.
For the quarter, provision coverage ratio improved to 64 per cent (62 per cent). Gross non-performing assets were kept at Rs 1,693 crore and net NPAs at Rs 979 crore, almost flat at 2.85 per cent and 1.67 respectively.
Advances increased 16 per cent. Total business reached a record Rs 1,45,770 crore or a 15 per cent growth.
For the year 2013, the bank is targeting business worth Rs 1,65,000 crore
To push profitability, the focus would remain on vanilla segments of retail credit and CASA.