In a display of financial resilience and digital evolution, UCO Bank on Monday reported a robust 10 per cent year-on-year rise in net profit to Rs 607 crore for Q1 FY2025–26, with advances shooting up 16.48 per cent to Rs 2,25,101 crore.
The announcement was made during a high-profile virtual news meet, presided over by Managing Director and CEO Ashwani Kumar and joined by Executive Directors Rajendra Kumar Saboo and Vijaykumar Nivrutti Kamble.
“The Q1 performance reflects not only strong fundamentals but also our digital-forward and risk-aware strategy,” Ashwani Kumar said, kicking off the session.
The total business of the bank surged by 13.51 per cent to Rs 5,23,736 crore. Deposits grew 11.37 per cent year-on-year to Rs 2,98,635 crore, while savings and current deposits rose by 4.58 per cent and 8.79 per cent.
“Our RAM (Retail, Agriculture, MSME) portfolio led the momentum with 23.47per cent growth. Within that, home loans were up by 17.92 per cent, vehicle loans by a staggering 66.94 per cent, and MSMEs by 20.33 per cent,” said Kumar.
Net interest income climbed 6.64 per cent, while non-interest income rose an impressive 19.42 per cent.
The operating profit for the quarter was Rs 1,562 crore, up 18 per cent from last year.
“The key contributors to our profit were higher interest income, efficient expense management, and improved treasury income,” Kumar stated.
Gross Non Performing Asset (NPA) dropped to 2.63 per cent from 3.32 per cent a year ago, while net NPA fell to 0.45per cent from 0.78 per cent. “We are well within our slippage guidance of 1.25 per cent. This quarter, slippages stood at Rs 631 crore, or 0.29 per cent of standard advances,” explained Kumar.
UCO Bank’s ambitious digital transformation project, Parivartan, has helped customers. “We’ve digitised 42 journeys, with 8 more in the pipeline. By September, 30 of these will be fully operational,” said Kumar. “We’ve already sourced over Rs 8,000 crore in business digitally, against a target of Rs 25,000 crore.”
Other digital strides included:
- WhatsApp Banking now live in 5 languages, offering 43 services
- Mobile banking user base grew from 14 lakh to 51 lakh in just two years
- Implementation of systems like UPI cardless cash, cyber fraud Pulse Alerts, and tap banking across branches
Despite NIM (Net Interest Margin) slightly dipping to 2.96 per cent from 3 per cent in March, Kumar said the bank remains on course to meet FY26 guidance. “NIM is likely to range between 2.9 per cent and 3.0 per cent, given repo rate adjustments,” he explained.
Retail growth, which soared 30.73 per cent in Q1, may normalise slightly. “The retail loan portfolio is strong—home loans and vehicle loans form the bulk. Unsecured loans like personal loans remain a small fraction,” Kumar said.
He also reiterated the bank’s commitment to startup lending: “We’ve already funded 40 startups and established help desks in five major states.”
In response to a question about PSU bank mergers, Kumar clarified, “UCO Bank has been proudly independent for 83 years. We were never part of any consolidation.”
Though shareholders approved the issuance of Rs 2,700 crore in equity capital, Kumar said no immediate fundraising is planned. “We may revisit this next quarter,” he added.
