RBL Bank Q1 results preview: Net profit likely to jump 29% but NIM may slip by up to 15 bps

RBL Bank is all set to report its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2023 on Saturday, July 22. According to Zee Business research, the private sector lender's net profit for the three-month period is estimated at Rs 260 crore, which translates to a jump of 29.2 per cent compared with the corresponding quarter a year ago. 

The analysts estimate RBL Bank's net interest income (NII) — or the difference between interest earned and interest paid — to grow 20.7 per cent on a year-on-year basis to Rs 1,240 crore for the first quarter of the current financial year. 

According to the research, the lender's net interest margin (NIM) — a key measure of profitability for financial institutions — for the three-month period is expected to shrink by 10-15 basis points on a year-on-year basis. For the quarter ended June 30, 2022, RBL Bank's margin had stood at 5.01 per cent. 

Zee Business analysts estimate RBL Bank's asset quality to remain stable. They peg its gross non-performing assets (NPAs) as a percentage of total loans at 3.2-3.3 per cent for the June quarter as against 3.7 per cent for the previous three months. The bank's net NPAs are estimated to be flat sequentially at 1.1 per cent, according to the research. 

Operational update

According to an operational update, released in early July, RBL Bank's gross advances increased 20 per cent to Rs 74,792 crore in the June quarter while deposits grew eight per cent to Rs 85,638 crore. 

Deposits in RBL Bank's current and savings accounts increased 12 per cent on a year-on-year basis to Rs 31,927 crore and its CASA ratio shrank by 10 basis points sequentially to 37.3 per cent.

What is CASA ratio? 

The CASA ratio is the proportion of a lender’s deposits in current and savings accounts to its total deposits. A lower CASA ratio means a smaller portion of a bank’s total deposits are in low-cost accounts, translating to a higher cost of funds, and vice versa.

How RBL Bank fared in Q4

For the last quarter of the financial year 2022-23, RBL Bank reported a 37 per cent year-on-year increase in standalone net profit to Rs 271 crore.

Its net interest income grew 7.1 per cent to Rs 1,211.2 crore, according to a regulatory filing. Read more on RBL Bank Q4 results

RBL Bank shares

RBL Bank shares — traded on the bourses with the symbol RBLBANK — finished the June quarter with a gain of 29 per cent, outperforming a rise of more than 10 per cent each in the Nifty as well as the Nifty Bank.