Central Bank of India Q2 Results: 26% NII growth drives earnings; NPAs improve sequentially

Central Bank of India on Saturday, October 17, reported a 21% year-on-year rise in standalone net profit to ₹1,469 crore for the September quarter of financial year 2026-27, supported by growth in net interest income (NII).

NII or the core income of the bank increased 26.3% year-on-year to ₹4,145 crore in the second quarter, compared with ₹3,283 crore in the corresponding period last year.

The bank’s asset quality improved sequentially, with gross non-performing assets (NPAs) declining to 1.61% as of September 30, 2026, from 1.86% in the June quarter and 2.60% a year earlier. Net NPAs fell to 0.14% from 0.15% in the previous quarter and 0.16% in the year-ago period.

Provisions, however, increased to ₹562.7 crore in Q2FY27 from ₹401.6 crore in the June quarter and ₹314.1 crore in the September quarter of the previous financial year. Fresh slippages improved to ₹734 crore from ₹939 crore in the June quarter.

The lender's net interest margin improved by 12 basis points from last year to 3.01% from 2.89%.

Central Bank of India's global business grew by 20.54% during the quarter to ₹8.89 lakh crore, while global advances were up nearly 30% year-on-year to ₹3.81 lakh crore.

Global deposits at the end of the quarter grew by 14.4% year-on-year to ₹5.08 lakh crore, while CASA deposits were up 9.2% to ₹2.26 lakh crore.

Operating profit during the quarter increased by 27% on a year-on-year basis to ₹2,268 crore. Cost of Deposits and Cost of Funds were down 28 and 25 basis points respectively from last year.

The bank’s other income rose to ₹3,952.8 crore in the September quarter from ₹2,633.5 crore in the preceding quarter and ₹2,486.6 crore a year earlier. The increase included income of ₹1,386.67 crore related to the listing of National Stock Exchange of India shares, comprising a realised gain of ₹252.5 crore from the offer for sale and a revaluation gain of ₹1,134.17 crore.

For the first half of FY27, Central Bank of India’s standalone net profit stood at ₹6,735.3 crore, compared with ₹5,991 crore in the year-ago period.

The bank’s board also approved a fundraising plan of up to ₹5,000 crore through long-term infrastructure bonds and up to ₹2,000 crore through Basel III-compliant Additional Tier 1 and Tier 2 bonds, in one or more tranches during the current or subsequent financial years, depending on requirements.

Shares of Central Bank of India closed 0.7% higher at ₹30.99 on Friday, ahead of the Q2 results announcement. The stock has declined about 18% so far in 2026.

ALso read: Axis Bank Q2 Results: Core Income beats; Asset Quality, slippages better sequentially