Private banks' loan books shrink in Q1 amid second wave of Covid-19

IndusInd, YES, Federal, and CSB post 1-3.5% sequential decline; HDFC Bank bucks the trend with 1.3% growth

Four small- and mid-sized private banks suffered a contraction in loan books in the June 2021 quarter (Q1FY22) over the previous one as they faced the brunt of the second wave of the pandemic.

However, HDFC Bank, one of the country’s largest private-sector lenders, bucked the trend with a marginal 1.3 per cent sequential growth rate in advances, despite restrictive lockdowns impacting economic activity.

Sequentially, the credit contraction was between 1 per cent and 3.5 per cent for IndusInd Bank, YES Bank, Federal Bank, and CSB Bank.

Bankers said even in the normal course business was in slow gear in the first quarter