Axis Bank Q4 Results: Net Loss At Rs 5,728 Crore On One-Time Hit From Citi Buy

Private sector lender Axis Bank reported a net loss of Rs 5,728.42 crore for the quarter ended March 31, owing to a one-time hit from its acquisition of Citibank's India consumer business and the non-bank consumer business of Citicorp Finance Ltd.

The acquisition was conducted at a cash value of Rs 11,949 crore. Adding additional costs due to the harmonisation of provisioning policies, operating expenses, and one-time acquisition costs, the total hit for Axis Bank during the quarter stood at Rs 12,489.82 crore.

Net profit stood at Rs 4,118 crore a year ago. Analysts polled by Bloomberg had estimated a net profit of Rs 2,531.60 crore for the fourth quarter.

The bank's core income for the quarter rose 33% year-on-year to Rs 11,742 crore. Other income for the quarter rose to Rs 4,895 crore, up 16% from a year ago.

Asset quality improved during the fourth quarter, with the gross non-performing asset ratio at 2.02%, down 36 basis points quarter-on-quarter. The net NPA ratio, too, improved by 8 basis points sequentially and stood at 0.39%.

Gross slippages during the quarter were Rs 3,375 crore, compared to Rs 3,807 crore a year ago. Recoveries and upgrades from NPAs during the quarter were Rs 2,699 crore. In the quarter, the bank wrote off NPAs aggregating Rs 2,429 crore.

Provisions for the quarter fell 69% year-on-year and stood at Rs 306 crore.

The bank's advances grew 19% year-on-year to Rs 8.45 lakh crore as of March 31, 2023. Domestic net loans grew 23% from a year ago. Retail loans rose to Rs 4.88 lakh crore, up 22% from a year ago, and accounted for 58% of the bank's net advances.

Small business banking grew 50% year-on-year, and the rural loan portfolio grew 26% from last year. Credit card advances grew 97% from a year ago due to the Citi portfolio acquisition.

The total deposits grew 15% year-on-year, within which savings account deposits grew 23% and current account deposits grew 17%. The share of CASA deposits in total deposits stood at 47%, up 215 basis points from last year.