IndusInd Bank to raise Rs 200 crore through GDR this quarter

Mumbai, Jan 29 (UNI) IndusInd Bank is set to tap the overseas market with its Global Depository Receipts(GDR) offering to mobilise around Rs 200 crore during the current quarter.

Interacting with reporters over the Bank's Q3 performance here today, Managing Director Bhaskar Ghose said the bank is still to give a mandate on the issue, as the merchant banker for the same is in the process of being finalised.

Replying to a question, Mr Ghose said,''the face value of GDR will be 30 crore, while the bank seeks to mobilise anywhere between Rs 192 crore to Rs 200 crore from the GDR issuance including the premium.'' To a related query, he said ''the entire GDR will be a fresh issue and no promoter's stake is being divested from this issue. At the most, the overall promoter's stake in the Bank may go down by about three per cent post-GDR scenario.'' Commenting on the Q3 results, Mr Ghose said the Bank has posted a net profit of Rs 21.63 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2006 as compared to Rs 27.37 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2005. Total Income has increased from Rs 352.18 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2005 to Rs 472.30 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2006.

He attributed the decline in the net profit of the quarter to distortions arising from a tax credit of Rs 19 crore in Q3 last fiscal year.

On recoveries and non performing assets (NPAs), Mr Ghose said the Bank recovered Rs 70 crore of bad debts and written off amounts during the nine-month period this year, as against the recovery of Rs 78 crore during the same period last year.

He conceded that the overall NPA level has, however, gone up because of one major account with an exposure worth Rs 130 crore, the last of such legacy accounts in the Bank was aggressively identified as sub-standard during this quarter.

UNI