UCO Bank net profit up nearly 16pc in Oct-Dec

UCO Bank on Saturday reported a 15.76%on-year increase in net profit for the quarter ended December to Rs 739.51 crore, compared to Rs 638.83 crore in the corresponding period a year ago. The lender’s total income for the quarter under review grew to Rs 7,521.16 crore, up from Rs 7,405.89 crore in the year-ago period. Interest earned rose to Rs 6,651.84 crore as against Rs 6,219.96 crore, it said in an exchange filing.
The Kolkata-headquartered bank’s operating profit rose by 5.96%to Rs 1,680.24 crore in October-December, compared to Rs 1,585.69 crore in the year-ago period.
Provisions and contingencies lowered to Rs 525.12 crore in the quarter to December, down from Rs 589.51 crore, it said.
On the asset quality front, UCO Bank showed significant improvement, with gross non-performing assets (NPA) declining to 2.41%as of December 31 from 2.91%a year ago. Gross NPAs stood at Rs 5,867.25 crore compared to Rs 6,081.55 crore in the corresponding period a year earlier. Net NPAs also improved, falling to 0.36%(Rs 852.55 crore) from 0.63%(Rs 1,283.13 crore). The bank’s capital adequacy ratio stood at 17.43%as of December 31, an improvement from 16.25%reported in the corresponding period of the previous year.