Govt may defer stake sale in IDBI Bank to FY18: Sources

There are no immediate plans of the government to dilute its stake in IDBI Bank, and a stake sale is likely to happen in FY18. Moreover, the government would also wait for a good offer before deciding on the stake sale, sources told CNBC-TV18. The stake sale will happen only after the bank’s balance sheet is cleaned-up, sources said.

It is likely that the capital short-fall after the third quarter results for IDBI Bank may stand around Rs 5,000 crore and the government may lend a helping hand by pumping in around Rs 1,000-1,500 crore before March-end, they said.Meanwhile, to help the bank shore-up capital there are clear instructions from the government to exit from its non-core assets. In that respect, the bank is already in talks with LIC to sell the 11 percent stake that it holds in Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). It is also looking at monetising from other non-core assets.Last month, IDBI Bank board had approved a plan to sell some of its non-core assets. The bank had reported a gross bad loan ratio of 15.16% at the end of December.Watch video for more...