IDBI Bank posts eighth straight quarterly loss as provisions surge

(Reuters) - IDBI Bank Ltd posted its eighth straight quarterly loss on Wednesday, as the state-run lender set aside more funds for bad loans.

Net loss was 36.02 billion rupees ($499.03 million) for the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with a loss of 1.98 billion rupees a year earlier. https://reut.rs/2DDWibF

This is the bank's longest streak of quarterly losses since at least 2005.

Provisions for bad loans at IDBI Bank, which has the highest bad loan ratio in the sector, jumped 92.9 percent to 54.82 billion rupees, leading to a doubling in total provisions.

Gross bad loans as a percentage of total loans stood at 31.78 percent at end-September, compared with 30.78 percent at the end of the previous quarter and 24.98 percent a year earlier.

 

Last week, shareholders of the bank voted in favour of issuing new shares to state-run Life Insurance Corp as part of a planned takeover aimed at helping IDBI get capital to set aside for bad loans and grow its lending.

($1 = 72.1800 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)