SBI posts record net loss of Rs 7,718 cr in Q4

NEW DELHI: The country's largest lender SBI on Tuesday reported a record standalone net loss of Rs 7,718 crore in the fourth quarter ended March, mainly due to a sharp rise in provisioning for bad loans.

Besides, a lower investment income, as well as higher provisioning for wage revision, also dented the profits of the state-owned lender, SBI said in a statement.

The bank had registered a net profit of Rs 2,815 crore in the corresponding quarter of preceding fiscal ended March 2017.

Compared sequentially, the loss in March quarter widened from Rs 2,416 crore net loss in December quarter.

For the full year, the bank has reported a net loss of Rs 6,547 crore, while there was a net profit of Rs 10,484 crore in 2016-17.

"Due to increase in provisions for NPAs and Mark to Market (MTM) on the investment portfolio, the bank incurred a net loss of Rs 6,547 crore in 2017-18," it said in the statement.

In the March quarter, the bank's provisions for non-performing assets (NPAs) jumped by 119 percent to Rs 24,080 crore as against Rs 10,993 crore in same period of 2016-17, showed the bank's regulatory filing to exchanges.

Overall provisioning and contingencies were raised to Rs 28,096 crore for the fourth quarter compared to Rs 11,740 crore in the year-ago period.

The bank also experienced a decline in its operating profit, net interest income during the quarter. However, its non-interest income has improved.

SBI said recovery in written-off accounts registered a robust growth of 21.18 percent in March quarter.

Gross bad loans as a percentage of total loans rose to 10.91 percent from 10.35 percent three months earlier and 6.90 percent a year prior, the lender said in a statement. The Mumbai-based bank expects a compound annual growth rate for credit of 12 percent by 2020, and aims for a gross non-performing advances ratio of under 6 percent by March 2020, Chairman Rajnish Kumar said.