RBI eases priority lending norms for SFBs, unlocks Rs 41,000 cr for low-risk sectors
(You can now subscribe to our
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel
The Reserve Bank of India's move to lower priority sector lending target for small finance banks (SFBs) is expected to free-up around Rs41,000 crore that could be re-deployed into lending to low-risk segments like housing.The number equals about 15% of advances of small finance banks' balance sheets as on March 31, 2025, according to estimates by CareEdge. 'The ability to redeploy this capital into higher-yielding or lower-risk segments such as secured retail, MSME, or housing finance offers significant upside for SFBs,' the rating agency said in a report Tuesday.The report added that the regulatory shift comes at a time when the gross non-performing Assets (GNPA) for small finance banks increased to 4.35% as of March 31, 2025, compared to 3.50% a year earlier. The rise was primarily driven by SFBs with a higher concentration in microfinance lending. 'In this context, the revised norms offer relief, allowing SFBs to rebalance their portfolios, mitigate concentration risk, and chart a more sustainable growth path.'CARE also said that a lower PSL requirement would create opportunities for SFBs to sell Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSLCs) or offload excess PSL exposure to other market participants. However, since the PSLC premium is currently low, this change's immediate impact on profitability may be limited in the short term.According to Kotak Institutional Equities, the central bank's relaxation does not solve the PSL compliance challenge for the small and marginal farmers (SMF) sub-sector, where the requirement stays unchanged at 10% of ANBC.This sub-segment is the most attractive with PSLC commissions in the range of 1.5-2.0% historically. 'In the near term, the relaxation will likely free up additional PSL in other subsectors (where PSLC commissions are much lower) for SFBs to earn modestly higher commissions until the share of PSL assets is in surplus,' the brokerage house said.The banking regulator on Friday lowered SFBs'' priority sector lending target to 60% of adjusted net bank credit (ANBC) or credit equivalent of off-balance sheet exposures (CEOBE), whichever is higher, from 75% earlier. The SFB shall continue to allocate 40% of ANBC or CEOBE to different sub-sectors under the priority sector, while the balance 20% can be allocated to any one or more sub-sectors where the bank has a competitive advantage.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Nibe Limited signs agreement with with Israel's Elbit Systems; to manufacture Advanced Universal Rocket Launcher
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Private defence manufacturing comapany NIBE Limited signed a Technology Collaboration Agreement with Elbit Systems , a Israeli defence company for Advanced Universal Rocket Launcher partnership is aimed at manufacturing and supply of Universal Rocket Launcher ( SURYA ), which is a highly advanced defence system capable of engaging targets with precision over a range of up to 300 technology transfer will be the first time that such a sophisticated system will be produced in India, paving the way for both domestic and international markets, ANI reported"The Universal Rocket Launcher is set to revolutionise modern warfare with its remarkable capabilities and performance, positioning NIBE Limited as a key player in the global defense sector ," the company said in a release. Elbit Land Systems , a division of Elbit Systems Ltd. , is a global leader in the design, development, and integration of advanced land-based defense solutions. The company specialises in a wide range of platforms and technologies, including armored vehicles, artillery systems, unmanned ground vehicles, and combat vehicle modernisation and is known for its innovation, reliability, and battlefield-proven systems.
Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
Vijay L Bhambwani's Ticker: It's time for bulls to make their presence felt
Ticker is a weekly newsletter by Vijay L Bhambwani. Subscribe to Mint's newsletters to get them directly in your email inbox. Dear Reader, Last week, I wrote about the daunting prospect of overhead supply (selling by bulls trapped at higher levels) weighing on bulls. That hypothesis was validated by the markets as indices slipped in the latter half of the week. Triggers for the overhead supply remain unchanged. Proposed changes in the US and UK, which may reduce the flow of money to pension funds, are worrying bulls. It should be remembered that pension funds manage huge sums as long-term assets under management (AUM), which makes them the biggest institutional investors in equity markets. If AUMs fall in the pension fund industry, support to equity markets may be impacted as well. The delay in tying up trade deals and fears of slowing consumer spending worldwide are also weighing on sentiments. This is an expiry week, and therefore, traders are likely to be preoccupied with rolling over or squaring up (closing) their trades. Volatility is usually higher in expiry weeks. The positive trigger that emerged is that traded volumes perked up in the derivatives segment. This was partly due to Jane Street being allowed to resume operations in India. Aggressive follow-up buying will be crucial to revive sentiments. Do note the Nifty-50 has slipped for four weeks in a row, and bulls are running out of time. If they are to get a grip on sentiments, they must make their presence felt before the 24,800 support I have been mentioning for a fortnight is violated. In terms of sectoral action, public sector undertakings will continue to attract traders due to the emotional and financial stakes being relatively high in these stocks. Banking stocks within the PSU space will be particularly volatile. As we approach the Reserve Bank of India's announcement on interest rates on 7 August, traders are likely to ramp up their exposure on these stocks. Larger two-way moves are expected on these stocks. Metal prices may witness routine month-end short-covering, which can perk up metal and mining stock prices this week. Upsides will remain capped, however. Oil and gas-related stocks will also witness hectic trades, as energy prices are slipping on global commodity exchanges. Bullion remains bullish for the patient long-term investor, who is willing to look past calendar 2025. Oil and gas prices are likely to stay subdued, and rallies, if any, are likely to run into selling pressure. I maintain my long-standing view that energy markets are well-supplied and shortages exist only in market narratives. I recommend my readers traders light with tail risk (hacienda) hedges in place to avoid any shocks to capital. Being an expiry week makes it even more pressing to prioritize capital preservation over trading profits. A tutorial video on hacienda hedges is here - Rear View Mirror Let us assess what happened last week so we can guesstimate what to expect in the coming week. The fall was led by the broad-based Nifty, whereas the Bank Nifty logged gains. Being heavily weighted in the Nifty index, banking stocks cushioned the declines in the Nifty which, otherwise, may have slipped significantly. A weak dollar aided sentiments in emerging markets including India. Safe-haven buying eased in bullion, which otherwise remained firm. Oil and gas fell sharply as demand growth was feared to contract in the near future. The rupee eased versus a weakening dollar, which underscores the nervousness in the forex peg. Indian forex reserves slipped marginally, which weighed on sentiments. The Indian 10-year sovereign bond yields rose which dragged banking stocks since banks are the biggest investors in bonds. NSE market capitalization slipped 1.54%, which indicates broad-based selling. Market wide position limits (MWPL) rose routinely ahead of the expiry. US headline indices rose, providing tailwinds to our markets, which could have otherwise slipped deeper. Retail Risk Appetite – I use a simple yet highly accurate yardstick for measuring the conviction levels of retail traders – where are they deploying money. I measure what percentage of the turnover was contributed by the lower and higher risk instruments. If they trade more of futures which require sizable capital, their risk appetite is higher. Within the futures space, index futures are less volatile compared to stock futures. A higher footprint in stock futures shows higher aggression levels. Ditto for stock and index options. Last week, this is what their footprint looked like (the numbers are average of all trading days of the week) – Turnover contribution in the higher-risk, capital-intensive futures segment was marginally higher. Much of it can be attributed to the rollover of trades from the July to August series. This results in dual turnover being logged, which is routine. In the relatively safer options segment, turnover rose in the stock options segment which is marginally more riskier than index options. Some of it can be rollover trades from July to August series. Overall. risk appetite remained subdued. Matryoshka Analysis Let us peel layer after layer of statistical data to arrive at the core message of the first chart I share is the NSE advance-decline ratio. After the price itself, this indicator is the fastest (leading) indicator of which way the winds are blowing. This simple yet accurate indicator computes the ratio of the number of rising stocks compared to falling stocks. As long as gaining stocks outnumber the losers, bulls are dominant. This metric is a gauge of the risk appetite of 'one marshmallow' traders. These are pure intra-day traders. The Nifty clocked smaller losses last week, but the advance-decline ratio slipped from 1.11 in the prior week to 0.67 last week. That means there were 67 gaining stocks for every 100 losing stocks. Intra-day buying conviction was lower. This ratio must stay above 1.0 sustainably all week for bulls to regain their lost initiative. A tutorial video on the marshmallow theory in trading is here - The second chart I share is the market wide position limits (MWPL). This measures the amount of exposure utilized by traders in the derivatives (F&O) space as a component of the total exposure allowed by the regulator. This metric is a gauge of the risk appetite of 'two marshmallow' traders. These are deep-pocketed, high-conviction traders who roll over their trades to the next session/s. The MWPL rose routinely ahead of the expiry week, but the peak was lower than the prior month's peak. This week being an expiry one, this reading can only fall this week. Swing traders are showing signs of hesitation. If markets rally strongly in the August derivatives series, bulls must ramp up their exposure levels to make their presence felt. Post-expiry routine decline should be watched keenly. If the low is higher than the 26.20 level of last month, it would imply some optimism.A dedicated tutorial video on how to interpret MWPL data in more ways than one is available here - The third chart I share is my in-house indicator 'impetus.' It measures the force in any price move. Last week, both indices fell with falling impetus readings. That tells us the fall was more of a gradual slide triggered by poor buying support rather than aggressive selling. Ideally, the price and impetus readings should rise in tandem to confirm a sustainable upthrust. The final chart I share is my in-house indicator 'LWTD.' It computes lift, weight, thrust and drag encountered by any security. These are four forces that any powered aircraft faces during flight; so, applying it to traded securities helps a trader estimate prevalent sentiments. Last week, the Nifty logged smaller declines, but the LWTD reading fell sharply to its lowest after the week ended 18 April, 2025. That implies lower fresh buying support for the Nifty this week. While short-covering can occur, it can cushion declines. For a fresh rally, aggressive follow-up buying will be required. A tutorial video on interpreting the LWTD indicator is here - Nifty's Verdict Last week, we saw a red candle on the weekly chart. This is the fourth bearish candle in a row. It was an inverted hammer candle. That indicates an abortive attempt by bulls as they tried to push prices higher but failed, and the index slid back into negative territory. The price remains above the 25-week average, which is a proxy for the six-month holding cost of an average retail investor. The medium-term outlook remains positive for now, as long as the price stays above this average. Last week, I advocated watching the 24,800 level, which bulls needed to defend in case of a decline. Note how the weekly low was 24,806. This threshold remains as the immediate support area to watch out for. The longer the index stays below this threshold, the more difficulty bulls may encounter on the upside. That is because overhead supply (selling from bulls trapped at higher levels) can limit rallies in the near term. On the flipside, the nearest resistance is at the 25,250 level, which must be overcome if the Nifty is to have a reasonable chance to rally. Your Call to Action – watch the 24,800 level as a near-term support. Only a break-out above the 25,250 level raises the possibility of a short-term rally. Last week, I estimated ranges between 57,500 – 55,050 and 25,525 – 24,400 on the Bank Nifty and Nifty respectively. Both indices traded within their specified resistance levels. This week, I estimate ranges between 57,725 – 55,325 and 25,375 – 24,300 on the Bank Nifty and Nifty respectively. Trade light with strict stop losses. Avoid trading counters with spreads wider than eight ticks. Have a profitable week. Vijay L. Bhambwani Vijay is the CEO a proprietary trading firm. He tweets at @vijaybhambwani
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business Standard
Planning to sell excess priority sector loans in Q2 FY26: MD Canara Bank
Canara Bank plans to offload its excess priority sector loans in the second quarter (Q2) of financial year (FY) 2025-26 to reduce stress on margins due to the reduction in interest rates. The total priority debt stands at 45.63 per cent of total loans, compared to the regulatory requirement of 40 per cent, Canara Bank MD and CEO K Satyanarayana Raju told PTI. As of FY26 June quarter, the bank has surpassed the mandated targets, achieving 45.63 per cent in priority sector lending and 23.25 per cent in agricultural credit, compared to the regulatory norms of 40 per cent and 18 per cent respectively, as per an exchange filing. Raju said: "We have a cushion under the priority sector space. There is demand in the market, and we may take advantage of the Priority Sector Lending Certificate (PSLC) sale." The company's net interest income declined by 4.59 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to ₹9,009 crore, compared to ₹9,166 crore in the first quarter of the previous financial year. The CEO expressed concerns over net interest margin (NIM) in the current financial year, stating, "The guidance of 2.75 per cent seems difficult at the current juncture due to the 100 basis point rate cut by the RBI so far this year and the expectation of another one as inflation has come down below 3 per cent." Raju added, "Whether the rate cut happens in August or October policy, one has to wait and watch." Due to the interest rate cut, he expects pressure in Q2 FY26 but remains optimistic about improvement in the third and fourth quarters. Subsidiary IPOs The public sector bank (PSB) is also targeting the listing of one of its subsidiaries, Canara Robeco AMC, on the stock market in Q2, with another listing planned for the next quarter. It has already initiated the process for the listing of the asset management joint venture. The bank is planning to offload 13 per cent of its stake in the AMC via an initial public offering (IPO). Moreover, Canara Bank has already initiated the process to divest 14.5 per cent of its stake in its life insurance subsidiary, Canara HSBC Life Insurance Company, through a public listing. Q1 Results The PSB posted a 22 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in net profit to ₹4,752 crore for the April–June quarter of FY26, supported by a strong rise in other income despite pressure on its net interest margin. Other income, comprising fees, commissions, and treasury gains, surged 32.73 per cent YoY to ₹7,060 crore. Fee-based income grew by 16.39 per cent, while treasury income saw a sharp jump of 296.22 per cent.
