ICICI Bank Draws SEBI Warning For Early FPI Fund Repatriation

Taking strong note of a violation involving the premature repatriation of foreign portfolio investor (FPI) funds, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued a warning letter to ICICI Bank, with the private sector lender informing stock exchanges about the development on Thursday.

An official of the bank said that it received the warning letter on June 2, a day after it was issued by SEBI.

 As per the disclosure, the matter relates to ICICI Bank's responsibilities in its capacity as a custodian.

SEBI issued the warning after the bank allowed an FPI to repatriate funds before the completion of the committed retention period under the Voluntary Retention Route (VRR).

The regulatory action comes even as ICICI Bank reported a strong financial performance during the year.

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The bank posted a net profit of Rs 13,701.7 crore, registering an 8.5% increase from Rs 12,630 crore reported a year earlier. The figure also exceeded Street estimates of Rs 12,949 crore.

The figures shows Its net interest income (NII) rose 8.4% year-on-year to Rs 22,979. crore from Rs 21,193 crore.

The bank also recorded an improvement in its asset quality, with net non-performing assets (NPAs) falling to 0.33% from 0.37% in the previous quarter. Gross NPAs also declined sequentially to 1.4% from 1.53%.

The lender's provisions dropped significantly to Rs 96.2 crore, down from Rs 2,556 crore in the preceding quarter and Rs 890.7 crore recorded during the same period last year.

Shares of ICICI Bank ended Thursday's session at Rs 1,252.30 on the BSE, up Rs 9.95 or 0.80%.

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