Nifty Bank: 9 years of outperformance wiped in 4 months due to pandemic

The index has fallen 32% since January, against an 8.2% decline in Nifty50

For nearly a decade, banks, especially private sector lenders, were the perfect stocks for investors and fund managers to pick to beat benchmark indices and generate alpha returns in their portfolios. The Covid-19 pandemic has ended this as years of outperformance by banking stocks has been wiped off over the past four months.

The Nifty Bank Index has fallen 32 per cent since January, and continues to lag behind the broader market. Over the same period, NSE Nifty is down just 8.2 per cent. Banking stocks have also lagged in the market recovery since the March 24 lows. The banking