SBI Q4 profit zooms 18% to record level

MUMBAI: State Bank of India on Thursday reported 18 per cent growth in consolidated net profit at Rs 21,384.15 crore, driven primarily by non-interest income.

On a standalone basis, the stateowned lender’s profit grew to Rs 20,698.35 crore from Rs 16,694.51 crore in the year-ago period.

Consolidated profit for fiscal year 2023-24 was up 20.55 per cent to Rs 67,084.67 crore as against Rs 55,648.17 crore in FY23. Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara said both the quarterly and yearly profits are all-time highs for the over two-century old lender.

In Q4, core net interest income grew by only 3.13 per cent to Rs 41,655 crore, on the back of over 15 per cent growth in advances but a 0.08 per cent decline in net interest margin.

Khara told reporters he expects a credit growth of 15-16 per cent in FY25, and will be looking to sustain net interest margin at the current level, wherein the domestic NIM is 3.46 per cent.

Deposits grew at 11.13 per cent in FY24, and Khara said the bank is aiming to take it to 13 per cent in FY25. Non-interest income grew 24.41 per cent to Rs 17,369 crore, providing the maximum support for the overall profit growth. The bank said profit or revaluations on investments nearly doubled to Rs 3,463 crore, while the miscellaneous income shot up by 62 per cent to Rs 4,957 crore, aiding the overall other income line. The loan growth was across all streams, including corporate, agriculture, retail and small businesses, Khara said, adding that the aim will be to sustain the same in the new fiscal as well.

There was an over 20 per cent reduction in the telecom portfolio even though the corporate loan book grew at 16 per cent, and Khara said it will be taking entity-specific calls in the sector.

To a question on the number of overall employees reducing by 27,000 over the last four years, Khara hinted at gains out of automation, saying the bank has been traditionally hiring 75 per cent of the retiring staff and has also been investing significantly in technology and artificial intelligence tools. It has also been hiring tech talent from the market to get the right skills, he said, adding 85 per cent of the nearly 12,000 probationary officers and associates are engineering graduates, who can be deployed into various tech function as well.