Ujjivan Small Finance Bank says business momentum is healthy but cautious on interest rates

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank expects to see similar growth in the July to September quarter as the first quarter of the fiscal, the lender’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ittira Davis said on Monday.

According to Davis, the bank’s business momentum looks healthy and the asset quality has improved with the net non-performing assets (NPAs) being the lowest across lenders in the quarter

“Disbursements are doing well. The festive season is around the corner, there is a pickup. The only dampener which we are closely watching is the interest rates,” he told CNBC-TV18 in an exclusive interview.

He believes if interest rates go up further, the markets may slow down but as of now it is looking very good and for the rest of the year, the bank is on the right track. The overall balance sheet growth of the bank is heading between 25 and 30 percent for the year.

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has raised Rs 475 crore via the qualified institutional placement (QIP) route. “We have raised a total of Rs 775 crore for capital and our capital ratios are now back to the pre-COVID levels. Tier-I and tier-II together are 26 percent. That gives us all the impetus for growth and also for the reverse merger,” he said.

 

Davis noted that post-COVID-19, the response to insurance policies and general insurance has picked up as people are looking at health insurance more positively these days.

“We have the credit life linked to the disbursements because as the disbursements go up, that part of the insurance also picks up. So if we are seeing a record level of disbursements, insurance will also follow through on that,” he mentioned.

When asked if the bank is looking at any inorganic opportunities, he said, “We are currently focusing on the reverse merger. Once the reverse merger is completed then we can look for inorganic opportunities.”