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IDBI Bank, under the scanner of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for advancing a Rs 950-crore loan to the beleaguered Kingfisher Airlines, on Monday said it would provide more information on the matter to the investigating agency in a couple of days.
"The CBI has asked us for some particulars. We have provided some particulars and will be offering some more in a couple of days," Chairman and Managing Director M S Raghavan said, without specifying the details.
ALSO READ: IDBI Bank's Kingfisher Airlines loan under CBI scanner
On Monday, the bank stock fell five per cent to an intra-day low of Rs 79.35 on the National Stock Exchange, amid the CBI launching a probe into the bank's loan to the debt-laden airline.Raghavan defended the bank's decision to disburse the loan in 2008-09. "The CBI inquiry relates to the advance made in 2008-09. That was the time Kingfisher was doing well," he said, adding at that time, the bank's credit committee hadn't opposed sanction of the loan.
Asked about the steps taken to recover the loan, he said, "SBI, the consortium leader, has the main exposure to the airline, with Rs 1,700 crore. It is making efforts to recover the amount."
Raghavan admitted the bank had exposure to Bhushan Steel, but didn't disclose the figure. Bhushan Steel is in the midst of a storm, following the CBI arresting its vice chairman and managing director, Neeraj Singhal, in connection with an alleged Rs 50-lakh bribery scandal involving Syndicate Bank chairman and managing director S K Jain.
Denying any immediate acquisition plan, he said, "In the finance ministry, there is talk of consolidation in the banking sector. But as of now, this is only speculation; there are no proposals or concrete guidelines."
The bank has decided to reduce loans to the infrastructure sector. "We have exposure of Rs 53,000 crore to the stressed infrastructure sector and the bank has decided to restrain lending to this segment. But we are not stopping loans to infrastructure; once it is out of stress, we will revive loans to the sector," Raghavan said.
The bank said in 2013-14, it had cut corporate loans by Rs 19,000 crore, with the share of corporate credit to the bank's total advances falling to 72 per cent from 78 per cent in 2012-13 (28 per cent of the overall advances was accounted for by loans to priority sectors).
"In 2014-15, our corporate lending will grow only five-six per cent. By the end of this financial year, we are targeting to raise credit off-take to priority sectors from the current 28 per cent to 40 per cent and scale up lending to the agriculture sector from four per cent to 18 per cent. Our focus is on affordable housing, agriculture and retail loans," said Raghavan.
IDBI Bank is eyeing 15 per cent growth in advances and deposits this financial year; it plans to add about 600 branches to its existing network of 1,473 branches across the country.
The bank, which already has a foreign branch in Dubai, has initiated the process to open a second in Singapore, as well as a representative office in Shanghai.
