28 Jan , 2022 By : monika singh
NEW DELHI – Shares of RBL Bank shed close to 4 per cent in early trade Friday even after the private sector lender reported a 6 per cent increase in October-December net profit as investors expressed concern about a rise in the bank’s expenses.
The Mumbai headquartered bank, however, sought to allay investor fears by terming October-December as a "turnaround" quarter.
The earnings come in the wake of recent upheavals for the lender, which witnessed concerns over financial stability and a consequent slump in share price after the sudden exit of its Managing Director and the placement of an RBI official on its board.
Net profit rose to Rs 156 crore in the quarter ended December 2021 from Rs 147 crore a year earlier, mainly due to an 11 per cent growth in NII to Rs 1,010 crore from Rs 908 crore a year earlier.
The scrip fell to a low of Rs 147.45 against the previous close of Rs 153.15 on the National Stock Exchange.
Total operating expenses rose 46 per cent to Rs 1,000 crore in December 2021 from Rs 683 crore a year earlier, reflecting the increase in operation, technology, people and compliance costs as the bank added 90 branches between September 2021 and January 2022 to take total beyond 500.
A 16 per cent rise in wholesale loans made up for the 6 per cent fall in retail loans as the bank consciously went slow on microfinance and small business loans due to the uncertainty caused by the rise in Covid infections during the quarter.
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