Karur Vyasa Bank to focus on retail, sees no big jump in NPAs

Asset quality issue in public sector banks will completely end once there is a pick-up in the economy, says K Venkataraman, MD & CEO of Karur Vyasa Bank. The bank reported stable first quarter numbers with a 8.7 percent rise in net profit to Rs 146.3 crore while the net interest income rose 13.7 percent to Rs 481.1 crore. Gross non-performing assets (NPA) for Q1 were 1.79 percent against 1.3 percent quarter-on-quarter. Venkataraman says the focus now is more on retail and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) on the back of strong growth prospects. He does not expect a substantial jump in NPAs in the quarters ahead. The bank, in order to monitor stressed assets, has a 'weak accounts list’ of accounts worth Rs 600-700 crore. Of this, Venkataraman expects about 50 percent to slip. Watch video for more...