India’s Public Sector Banks (PSBs) have achieved a remarkable milestone by recording their highest-ever aggregate net profit of Rs 1.41 lakh crore in the financial year 2023-24, the Finance Ministry highlighted in a release on Sunday.
Public sector banks (PSBs) showed strong performance in the first half of current fiscal (FY25) with 11 per cent annual growth as their aggregate business stood at Rs 236.04 lakh crore in the April-September period, the government said on Tuesday.
India’s Public Sector Banks (PSBs) have achieved a remarkable milestone by recording their highest-ever aggregate net profit of Rs 1.41 lakh crore in the financial year 2023-24, the Finance Ministry highlighted in a release on Sunday.
Their Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) ratio steeply declined to 3.12% in September 2024. The Gross NPA ratio of PSBs has witnessed a remarkable improvement, declining to 3.12% in September 2024 from a peak of 14.58% in March 2018, it added.
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Further, demonstrating continued momentum, they registered a net profit of Rs 85,520 crore in the first half of 2024-25.
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The Finance Ministry also noted that the PSBs have contributed significantly to shareholder returns, paying a total dividend of Rs 61,964 crore over the past three years. Another indicator of the improved resilience of the Public Sector Banks is their Capital to Risk (Weighted) Assets Ratio (CRAR), which rose by 39 basis points to 15.43% in September 2024, up from 11.45% in March 2015.
The gross advances of Scheduled Commercial Banks grew from Rs. 8.5 lakh crore to 61 lakh crore during 2004-2014, which has significantly increased to Rs. 175 lakh crore in March 2024 PSBs have also played a key role in promoting financial inclusion through crucial government schemes like the Atal Pension Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, to name a few, it said.
The ministry said PSBs sanctioned 54 crore Jan Dhan accounts and more than 52 crore collateral-free loans under various flagship financial inclusion schemes like PM Mudra, Stand-Up India, PM-SVANidhi, PM Vishwakarma.
Further, it also highlighted that over the last 10 years, the number of bank branches increased from 1,17,990 in March 2014 to 1,60,501 in September 2024; out of which 1,00,686 branches are in Rural and Semi-Urban (RUSU) areas.
Highlighting other inclusive initiatives, the Finance Ministry said the total operative Kisan Credit Card (KCC) accounts as of September 2024 stood at 7.71 crore with a total outstanding of Rs. 9.88 lakh crore.
The MSME advances have also registered a CAGR of 15% over the last 3 years, with total advances as on March 31, 2024, standing at Rs. 28.04 lakh crore, posting an annual growth of 17.2%.
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