Country’s largest private lender ICICI Bank on Saturday released its results for the quarter ending March 31, 2020 and reported 26% rise in its standalone net profit at Rs 1,221 crore. The net profit of ICICI in year-ago period was ₹969 crore. 

The net interest income of ICICI jumped by 17% to Rs 8,927 crore as against Rs 7,620 crore in March 2019. The bank made higher provisions of Rs 5,967 crore, including coronavirus-related provisions of Rs 2,725 crore. The provisions in the previous quarter were Rs 2,083 crore.

“The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic could result in fewer business opportunities, lower revenues, and an increase in the levels of non-performing assets and provisions, depending inter alia upon the period of time for which the pandemic extends, the remedial measures adopted by governments and central banks, and the time taken for economic activity to resume at normal levels after the pandemic,” the bank said in its filing to stock exchanges.

ICICI bank also informed that its board appoved fundraising of up to USD 3 billion via issuance of bonds, notes, offshore certificates of deposits in overseas market over one year and fundraising of up to Rs 25,000 crore in domestic market through issuance of debt securities has also been approved by the lender’s board.

The profit after tax of the bank grew by 136% year-on-year to Rs 7,931 crore in FY20 from Rs 3,363 crore in the year ended March 31, 2019.

The lender’s gross non-performing asset (NPA) ratio for March quarter fell to 5.53% as against 5.95% in December quarter while net NPA for March quarter also decreased, to 1.41% as against 1.49% in December quarter and 2.06% in year-ago period.

The bank said in a statement that its core operating profit jumped by 18 per cent year-on-year to Rs 7,148 crore in the January to March quarter. The total advances of ICICI also increased by 10% year-on-year to ₹6.45 lakh crore at March 31, 2020, from Rs 5.86 lakh crore at March 31, 2019.

The total deposits of the lender increased by 18% year-on-year to ₹7.7 lakh crore at March 31, 2020.