CRISIL upgrades Technopark rating to

 CRISIL upgrades Technopark rating to
A+/ Stable: Achieves Unparalleled Record

The Electronics Technology Parks Kerala (Technopark) achieves CRISIL’s A+/Stable, as per the latest review had on 20.07.2021, upgraded from ‘CRISIL A/Stable’ rated for the last two consecutive years. The upgraded rating was achieved majorly on the discipline exercised on long-term bank facilities. The standalone business and financial risk profiles of Technopark were considered by CRISIL for the rating. Since the inception of Technopark, this is for the first time the institution has bagged A+/Stable during the last 10 years of rating with CRISIL. From D (Default) rating in 2014, it moved upward to BB, then to BBB, then to A/Stable during 2019 & 2020.  This historic accomplishment is recognition for Technopark’s strengths which include steady cash flow with full occupancy in Phases I and III, diversified clientele, and long-term lease agreements.

CEO Technopark, Shri. John M Thomas added, “Despite the adverse conditions that Covid inflicted across the globe, Technopark has invariably maintained the strength of its financial stability and track record to win this achievement.  Amidst this ubiquitous pandemic, Technopark added around 40 companies to its tenant list, revealing the vigour and vastness of the infrastructure that it offers. Technopark’s continuous improvement in financial position coupled with infrastructure development, operational efficiency, and strong plans have helped in achieving this goal”. 

Technopark had completely leased out IT office spaces in Phases I & III. Also leased the entire land parcel on long-term lease to IT companies/ IT co-developers in Phases I & II. The exalted list of companies in Technopark currently includes the big names such as Infosys, UST Global, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Ernst & Young, Allianz, IBS Software, Oracle, Nissan, Guidehouse, SunTec, Tata Elxsi, Envestnet, Quest Global, etc. The growing IT infrastructure facility of Technopark is supported through co-developers such as Embassy-Taurus, Brigade Enterprises, Carnival Infopark, Seaview, Amstor House, and M-Squared.

CFO Technopark, Smt. Jayanthi. L added, “The rating continues to reflect steady cash flow with healthy occupancy and diverse clientele, along with strong debt protection metrics, bolstered by ample liquidity. Our cash flow has remained robust despite the offering of transitory relief to tenants for rent payment as well as forgoing rental escalation for fiscal 20-21 on account of the Covid-19 pandemic”.

CRISIL is a leading agile and innovative, global analytics company driven by its mission of making markets function better. CRISIL, India’s foremost provider of ratings, data, research, analytics, and solutions. 

https://www.crisil.com/en/home/our-businesses/ratings/company-factsheet.ETPK.html

Utkarsh Small Finance Bank gets

 

Utkarsh Small Finance Bank gets SEBI approval to float IPO

Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Ltd, has received market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) nod to raise Rs. 1350 crore through the Initial Public Offering (IPO) route. The company had filed DRHP with SEBI on March 5, 2019.

The IPO consists of fresh issue aggregating up to Rs 750 crore and an offer for sale of up to Rs  600 crore by the selling shareholder Utkarsh Coreinvest Ltd. The equity shares, of face value Rs 10 each, will be listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange) BSE.  The public issue of shares, of face value of Rs 10 each, will be listed on both National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

As stated in the DRHP, the company intends to utilize the net proceeds from the fresh issue to augment its tier 1 capital base to meet future capital requirements arising out of growth in its assets, i.e Loans and Advances. The company may consider raise Rs. 250 Cr through a pre IPO placement which would be in consultation with the appointed lead managers to the issue. If the pre-IPO placement, of equity shares aggregating upto Rs 250 crore, is undertaken, the amount will be reduced from the fresh issue.

The company intends to utilize the net proceeds from the fresh issue to augment its tier 1 capital base to meet future capital requirements arising out of growth in its assets, i.e Loans and Advances. The company may consider raise Rs. 250 Cr through a pre IPO placement which would be in consultation with the appointed lead managers to the issue.

The fast growing Varanasi headquartered company, who’s SFB was incorporated in 2016 and commenced operations in 2017, is one of the most profitable small finance banks in the country as on FY 2020, according to the CRISIL report. As on September 30, 2020, the retail and technology focused, small finance bank across 528 banking outlets has served 2.74 million customers majorly located in rural and semi urban areas in the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand that has a significant untapped market. Its deposits and disbursements have grown at a CAGR of 54.48% and 33.66% respectively, between FY 18-20 and as on March 31, 2020 had the lowest gross and net NPA ratios amongst its SFB peers. Between FY17-20 Small Finance banks have registered an AUM growth rate of 30% CAGR and the loan portfolio is expected to see a growth of 22% in the near term.

ICICI Securities Ltd., IIFL Securities Ltd. and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd. are the BRLMS to the Issue.

YES BANK Q2 Financial Results 2020-21

Key updates of Q2FY21

·         Deposit mobilization continues; at INR 1,35,815 Crores grew 15.7% q-o-q and 28.9% over 6 month period. CD ratio further improved to ~123%; ~1.5 Lac CASA Accounts opened during the quarter, greater than pre-COVID levels

·         Full repayment of RBI special liquidity facility of INR 50,000 Crores

·         Sustained momentum in Operating Profits at INR 1,360 Crores, up 18.6% q-o-q

·         C/I ratio 49.3%; lowest in last 5 quarters

·         Total Covid related provisioning stepped up to INR 1,918 Crores (1.15% of advances)

·         Credit Rating upgrades from Moody’s, CRISIL, India Ratings and ICRA

·         Continued Leadership in Technology: UPI: #1 in P2M transactions, ~37% vol. market share, IMPS: #1 Remitter Bank*

·         Launch of next generation digital products: YES ONLINE, Video KYC, Loan in Seconds, WhatsApp Banking

 Financial Highlights

·         Net Profit at INR 129 Crores for Q2FY21 up 2.8x q-o-q as compared to loss of INR 600 Crores in Q2FY20

·         Net Interest Income at INR 1,973 Crores grew 3.4% q-o-q aided by higher NIMs at 3.1% up ~10 bps q-o-q

·         Non-Interest income for Q2FY21 at INR 707 Crores, grew 13.9% q-o-q. Strong bounce back seen across transactional and granular fee streams

·         Operating expenses declined 4.5% q-o-q and 21.1% y-o-y to INR 1,320 Crores

·         Total step up in provisioning of ~ INR 1,600 Crores; consists of INR 1,038 Crores towards Covid19 related provisioning and balance predominantly towards Non-Performing Investments

·         Net Advances at INR 1,66,923 Crores grew 1.5% q-o-q; Strong pickup in retail disbursements at INR 3,764 Crores, up from INR 424 Crores last quarter.

·         Liquidity Coverage Ratio as on September 30, 2020 at 107.3%

·         Capital position: CET I ratio at 13.5%, Total CRAR at 19.9%

·         Asset quality parameters as of September 30, 2020:

o    PCR improves to 75.7% vs. 75.1% last quarter; including technical write-offs PCR at ~80%

o    GNPA of 16.9% (vs. 17.3% last quarter)

o    NNPA of 4.71% (vs. 4.96% last quarter)

ICICI Home Finance introduces special

ICICI Home Finance introduces special FD scheme for senior citizens

ICICI Home Finance (ICICI HFC) is offering a special FD scheme for senior citizens with competitive interest rates of 6.55%, 6.70%, and 6.75% per annum for the tenures of 30,45 and 65 months respectively for deposits less than INR 2 crores. The current FD interest rates have been reduced by 55 basis points from the previous rates, effective July 31^st 2020.

Senior Citizens can invest in these longer tenures to get regular monthly income.

For example: Mr. Kumar making a deposit of 10 lakhs for a tenure of 65 months will earn monthly income of INR 5458*.

Deposits offered by ICICI HFC enjoy the highest credit rating from CRISIL, ICRA & CARE.

Deposits can also be made by the general public with competitive interest rates of 6.30%, 6.45%, and 6.50% per annum for the tenures of 30,45 and 65 months respectively for deposits less than INR 2 crores.

It is simple to open an ICICI HFC Fixed Deposit, as one can visit www.icicihfc.com/fixed-deposit and apply online from the comfort of your home. Just click “Apply FD” link on the website, follow the easy online application process and start earning via high interest in no time.

IDFC FIRST Bank Q4 FY20 - Financial Results

 IDFC FIRST Bank Q4 FY20 - Financial Results

IDFC FIRST Bank Q4 FY20 Profit after Tax at Rs. 72 crores   
Strong growth in CASA deposits in Q4 20; Retail contributes 61% of Total Funded Book

Financial results at a glance

The Board of Directors of IDFC FIRST Bank, the bank created by the merger of IDFC Bank and Capital First recently, in its meeting held today, approved the combined audited financial results for the quarter and the year ended 31 March 2020, as summarized below.

Earnings

 The Profit after Tax for Q4 FY20 is reported at Rs. 72 crores as compared to Loss of Rs. 218 crores for Q4 FY19.

 Q4 FY20 Net Interest Income (NII) grew 40% Y-o-Y to Rs. 1,563 crores, up from Rs. 1,113 crores in Q4 FY19.

 Net Interest Margin (quarterly annualized) rose to 4.24% in Q4 FY20 from 3.03% in Q4 FY19.

 Fee and Other Income (without trading gains) increased 40% to Rs. 432 Crores in Q4 FY20 as compared to Rs. 310 crores in Q4-FY19. Total Fee Income for Q4 FY20 is 22% of the Total Income (net of Interest Expenses and Trading gain). The trading gain for Q4-FY20 was at Rs. 319 crores.

 Total Income (net of Interest Expense) grew by 67% at Rs. 2,314 crores for Q4-FY20 as compared to Rs. 1,386 crores for Q4-FY19.

 Pre-Provisioning Profit (PPOP) increased to Rs. 787 crores in Q4 FY20 compared to Rs. 239 crores in Q4 FY19.

 Without the trading gain, PPOP increased by 70% on YOY basis from Rs. 275 crores in Q4-FY19 to Rs. 464 crores in Q4-FY20.

 The provision for Q4-FY20 was at Rs. 679 crores which included Rs. 225 crores of COVID-19 related provision. The Bank was required to make COVID-19 related provision of Rs. 25 crore pertaining to accounts where asset classification benefit was given. The bank has provided the entire amount in Q4-FY20 itself. The bank additionally took Rs. 200 crores of COVID-19 related provisioning proactively for over-dues of 1-89 days taking total COVID provisions to Rs. 225 cr. Retail provisions for the quarter was Rs. 349 crores.

Liabilities – Strong and Steady growth

 CASA Deposits posted strong growth, rising 162% YoY to Rs. 20,661 crores as on 31 March 2020 as compared to Rs. 7,893 crores as on 31 March 2019.

 CASA Ratio improved to 31.87% as on 31 March 2020 as compared to 11.40% as on 31 March 2019.

 Core Deposits (Retail CASA and Retail Term Deposits) increased 157% to Rs. 33,924 crores Q4 FY20 from 13,214 crores in Q4 FY19. This signifies the sticky and sustainable nature of the growing deposit balance.

 The Fixed Deposits of the Bank has been assigned the highest rating “FAAA/Stable” by CRISIL.

 The Bank has reduced its dependence on the wholesale and market borrowings which have been suitably replaced by the growth of core Retail Deposits. The borrowing through Certificate of Deposits (CD) of the Bank has reduced by 75% on YOY basis to Rs. 7,111 crores as on 31 March 2020 from Rs. 28,754 crores as of 31 March 2019.

Loans and Advances – stable with growing retail %

 Total Funded Loan Assets, gross of Inter-Bank Participation Certificates (IBPC), stood at Rs. 1,07,004 crores for Q4 FY20, compared to Rs. 1,10,400 crores for Q4 FY19. As the stated strategy the Bank focused on growing the retail loan book and decreased the wholesale loan book including infrastructure loans to reduce concentration risk on the portfolio.

 Out of the total book mentioned above, Retail Loan Book increased by 40% to Rs. 57,310 crores as on 31 March 2020, compared to Rs. 40,812 crores as on 31 March 2019.

 The Bank also acquired inorganic portfolio buyouts, primarily to cater to the PSL requirements where the underlying assets are retail loans. Retail loans including such inorganic portfolio constitute 61% of the overall loan assets.

 Wholesale Loan Book, including Security receipts and Loans converted to equity reduced by 26% from Rs. 56,665 crores as of 31 March 2019 to Rs. 41,739 crores as of 31 march 2020 as the Large corporate loans and infrastructure loans continue to decline steadily as per the stated objective.

 Within the wholesale segment as stated above, the Infrastructure loan book reduced by 31% to Rs. 14,840 crores Q4 FY20 from Rs. 21,459 crores Q4 FY19.

Asset Quality

 Gross NPA of the Bank reduced to 2.60% as of March 31, 2020, as compared to 2.83% as of December 31, 2019.

 Net NPA was 0.94% as of March 31, 2020, as compared to 1.23% as of December 31, 2019.

 The Gross NPA and Net NPA for the Bank without considering the moratorium impact would have been 2.88% and 1.14% respectively.

 As of 31 March 2020, after considering the moratorium impact, the Gross NPA % of the Retail Loan Book was at 1.77% as compared to 2.26% as of 31 December 2019 and Net NPA % of the Retail Loan Book of the Bank was at 0.67% as compared to 1.06% as of 31 December 2019.

 Without the moratorium, the Gross NPA and Net NPA of Retail Assets as of 31 March 2020 would have been 2.22% and 0.99% as compared to 2.26% and 1.06% as of 31 December 2019.

 Apart from the NPA, the identified stressed asset pool of the bank, reduced by Rs. 933 crores during the last financial year. This stressed pool stood at Rs. 3,205 crores as of 31 March 2020 against which the Bank has done provisioning of Rs. 1,569 crores, 49% of the pool.

 Apart from the accounts mentioned in the previous slide, the Bank had also marked one large telecom account as stressed and provisioned 50% against the total outstanding of Rs. 3,244 crores (Funded – Rs. 2,000 crores and Non-Funded – Rs. 1,244 crores) in the quarter ending on 31 December 2019. The Bank continues to carry the same provision for the account as of 31 March 2020.

COVID-19 situation

 Like the entire country and the overall economy, the Bank is also encountering the challenges due to the COVID-19 Pandemic situation and the related lock-downs across the country.

 As essential services, the Bank continues to service its customers in all possible ways emphasizing on technology driven solutions. The branches of the Bank have remained open during this emergency time and the employees have efficiently helped their customers for all their needs in this situation, while remaining under the guidelines as prescribed by the Government Authorities.

 Moratorium has been provided to 35% of the outstanding book based on the customer requests as received and granted following the notifications by the RBI. Further, the Bank has provided 100% moratorium on suo-moto basis to select segments like rural financing.

 The Bank was required to make COVID-19 related provision of Rs. 25 crore pertaining to accounts where asset classification benefit was given. The bank has provided the entire amount in Q4-FY20 itself and has additionally taken Rs. 200 crores of COVID-19 related provisioning proactively for over-dues of 1-89 days taking total COVID provisions to Rs. 225 cr.

 Although the incremental disbursals on the retail loan book have been sluggish during the lockdown period, the Bank continues to grow its retail deposits. We expect the retail loan book growth will gradually resume post the lock-down restrictions are likely to be lifted in a phased manner.

 In this situation, the Bank continues to focus on its technology interventions and efficiency improvements for which it has taken several steps including the cost rationalization.

Capital Position

 As of March 31 2020, the Net Worth of the Bank was Rs. 15,343 crores and the Book Value per share was Rs. 31.90.

 Capital Adequacy of the Bank is strong at 13.38% with CET-1 Ratio at 13.30% as of 31 March 2020 as compared to Capital Adequacy Ratio of 13.29% and CET-1 Ratio of 13.28% as of 31 December 2019.

 The Bank has announced raising Rs. 2,000 crore of fresh equity capital through preferential route, process to complete by June 2nd week.

 Post the completion of the process, the Capital Adequacy Ratio based on 31 March 2020 will be 15.55% with CET-1 Ratio of 15.32%.

Mr. V Vaidyanathan, Managing Director and CEO, IDFC FIRST Bank, said, 

“We are happy to inform that deposits for our Bank are coming thick and strong. In Q4 FY20, we saw strong inflows into our Bank as retail deposits increased by Rs 4,658 crore, despite the turmoil in the markets. Once the lockdown lifts, things will only get better for both lending as well as deposits as the economic activity will pick up. We are already seeing this that where locations are opening up from lockdown, demand is strong. Further by raising Rs. 2,000 crore of fresh equity capital, and reaching strong capital adequacy of 15.5%, the Bank is in a strong position to grow from here on.”

Asirvad Microfinance crosses Rs 5,000 crore in AUM

Asirvad Microfinance crosses Rs 5,000 crore in AUM

Asirvad Microfinance Limited, a subsidiary company of Manappuram Finance Limited, has achieved a significant milestone of Rs 5,000 crore in assets under management (AUM). In a statement released to the media, Mr.  Raja Vaidyanathan, Managing Director, said that “Asirvad has taken the route of multi-state business operations to achieve this milestone. The company is rated AA-/Stable by CRISIL, the highest credit rating in the MFI sector”.

Mr. V. P. Nandakumar, Chairman of Asirvad, said, “Asirvad has continuously improved its risk management practices by increased automation and digitization, in line with our objective to offer our services to clients at a competitive rate.”

Asirvad caters to over 21 lakh women members through its 1,037 strong branch network spread across 314 districts in 22 States. It has a well-diversified portfolio, with AUM exceeding INR 200 crore and more than 1 lakh members in 10 states. It has recently upgraded its entire operations through the e-onboarding process of clients at their doorstep. According to Mr. Vaidyanathan, after the up gradation, Asirvad aims to reduce the turn-around time to less than five days for its loan offering services. Further, the entire loan documentation process of the company is now digitized.

Asirvad Microfinance was acquired by Manappuram Finance Limited in February 2015. At the time, the company’s AUM was around Rs.300 crore.

is milestone. The company is rated AA-/Stable by CRISIL, the highest credit rating in the MFI sector”.

Mr. V. P. Nandakumar, Chairman of Asirvad, said, “Asirvad has continuously improved its risk management practices by increased automation and digitization, in line with our objective to offer our services to clients at a competitive rate.”

Asirvad caters to over 21 lakh women members through its 1,037 strong branch network spread across 314 districts in 22 States. It has a well-diversified portfolio, with AUM exceeding INR 200 crore and more than 1 lakh members in 10 states. It has recently upgraded its entire operations through the e-onboarding process of clients at their doorstep. According to Mr. Vaidyanathan, after the up gradation, Asirvad aims to reduce the turn-around time to less than five days for its loan offering services. Further, the entire loan documentation process of the company is now digitized.

Asirvad Microfinance was acquired by Manappuram Finance Limited in February 2015. At the time, the company’s AUM was around Rs.300 crore.

L&T Finance Limited announces Tranche

L&T Finance Limited announces Tranche I of Public Issue of Secured Redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures (Secured NCDs)

·               Secured NCDs of a face value of Rs.1,000 each

·               The Tranche I Issue includes a Base Issue Size for an amount of Rs. 500 crore (“Base Issue Size”) with an option to retain oversubscription upto Rs. 1,000 crore aggregating up to Rs.1,500 crore (“Tranche I Issue”)

·               The Tranche I Issue is rated as CRISIL AAA / Stable (pronounced as CRISIL triple A with Stable outlook), CARE AAA / Stable (pronounced as CARE triple A with Stable Outlook), IND AAA / Stable (pronounced as IND triple A with Stable outlook).

·               The Tranche I Issue offers effective annualized yield up to 8.64% p.a. on redemption^#

·               The Tranche I Issue opens on December 16, 2019 and closes on December 30, 2019*

·               The Secured NCDs will be listed on BSE and NSE (collectively, “Stock Exchanges”). NSE shall be the Designated Stock Exchange.

 L&T Finance Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of L&T Finance Holdings Limited) is coming out with a public issue of Secured Redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures (“Secured NCDs”) of the face value of Rs. 1,000 each.

The Tranche I Issue aggregates to Rs. 500 crore, with an option to retain over-subscription upto Rs. 1,000 crore, aggregating upto a total of Rs. 1,500 crore. The Tranche I Issue offers various options for subscription with coupon rates ranging from 8.25% - 8.65% (per annum). The Tranche I Issue opens on December 16, 2019 and closes on December 30, 2019, with an option of early closure or extension.

The Secured NCDs proposed to be issued under this Issue have been rated ‘CRISIL AAA (stable) (pronounced as CRISIL triple A with Stable outlook)’, CARE AAA / Stable (pronounced as CARE triple A with Stable outlook) and IND AAA / Stable (pronounced as IND triple A with Stable outlook). The rating of Secured NCDs by CRISIL, CARE and India Ratings indicate that instruments with this rating are considered to have the highest degree of safety regarding timely servicing of financial obligations. Such instruments carry lowest credit risk.

These Secured NCDs, bearing a fixed rate of interest, are being offered under six different series. There are four categories of investors defined as: Category I (Institutional Investors) Category II (Non- Institutional Investors), Category III (High Net-worth Individuals) and Category IV (Retail Individual Investors).

The terms of each series of NCDs, offered under Tranche I Issue are set out below:

**Our Company would allot the Series IV NCDs, as specified in the Tranche I Prospectus to all valid Applications, wherein the Applicants have not indicated their choice of the relevant Series of NCDs.

Net proceeds of the Issue will be utilized for the purpose of onward lending, financing, refinancing the existing indebtedness of the Company (payment of the interest and/or repayment /prepayment of principal of borrowings) (up to 75%) - and the rest (up to 25%) for general corporate purpose.

The Secured NCDs offered through the Tranche I Prospectus are proposed to be listed on the BSE & NSE. NSE shall be the Designated Stock Exchange for the Tranche I Issue.

The lead managers to the Issue are Edelweiss Financial Services Limited, A. K. Capital Services Limited, Trust Investment Advisors Private Limited and JM Financial Limited.

IDBI Trusteeship Services Limited is the Debenture Trustee and Link Intime India Private Limited is the registrar to the issue.