Bank NPAs may rise to 13.5% by Sept

The Covid-19 pandemic threatens to result in balance-sheet impairments and capital shortfalls for banks, especially as regulatory relief are rolled back, cautioned Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India, in the latest Financial Stability Report (FSR). According to the January 2021 FSR, gross nonperforming assets (GNPA) ratio of scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) could rise to 13.5 per cent by September 2021 from 7.5 per cent in September 2020 under the baseline scenario. The July 2020 FSR had estimated that the GNPA ratio of all SCBs may increase from 8.5 per cent in March 2020 to 12.5 per cent by March 2021.