UCO Bank plans to launch its qualified institutional placement of Rs 2,000 crore in the March quarter, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ashwani Kumar said in the post earnings call.
"We have received the approval from the government and board. We have also started meeting probable investors, such as mutual funds and we will hopefully launch the QIP this quarter," Kumar said, answering to a query.
Post the QIP issue, the government's stake will come down in the bank by 3%, he said. As on December end, the government holds 95.39% stake in UCO Bank, according to bourses.
This has come as media reports suggested that the government approved fundraising plans of up to Rs 10,000 crore for five public sector banks through the issue of QIP, and additional stake sales through an offer for sale.
These five banks include Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Punjab & Sind Bank, UCO Bank and Central Bank of India.
This move comes as the government has extended the deadline for meeting minimum public shareholding norms for public sector enterprises and public sector financial institutions till August 2026.
Of the 12 public sector banks, five are yet to comply with minimum public shareholding norms and the government's holding is beyond 75%.
On the state-owned bank's financials, Kumar expects the bank's credit growth to remain in the guidance of 12-14% and deposit growth at 8-10% in the January-March quarter.
He has kept the bank's net interest margins guidance unchanged at 3-3.10% for the March quarter.
For the quarter ended December, UCO Bank's domestic gross advances increased by 16.44% on year to Rs 2.08 lakh crore and total deposits grew by 9.36% on year to Rs 2.80 lakh crore.
Global net interest margin of the bank came in at 3.17%, as against 3.10% a quarter ago.
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
