Public sector lender Indian Bank is implementing significant expansion plans for the current financial year, with 100 new branches planned across the country. As reported by PTI, MD and CEO Binod Kumar confirmed that the bank opened 15 branches on August 15 (Foundation Day) and expects similar expansion levels this year. The bank currently operates 6,003 domestic branches and three overseas locations - Singapore, Colombo, and Jaffna, along with an IFSC Banking Unit at Gandhinagar as of June 30, 2026. To support this growth, the bank plans to increase its workforce by 2,500 personnel during the current fiscal, bringing total employees to approximately 41,875 at the end of June 2026. The expansion strategy focuses on increasing the bank's presence in Central and Western parts of the country, building on the bank's enhanced presence in the eastern region and Uttar Pradesh following the amalgamation of Allahabad Bank in 2020.
Public sector lender Indian Bank is targeting treasury income of ₹1,000-1,500 crore in the current financial year, following better-than-expected first-quarter performance. According to reports from The Economic Times, the bank's MD and CEO Binod Kumar revealed that during the first quarter, the bank actually earned ₹500 crore in treasury income, significantly exceeding the anticipated ₹300 crore. Treasury income comprises two components: trading income and interest income from investments.
On asset quality management, Kumar stated that the bank has been managing it quite well. As reported by PTI, the bank aims to bring down gross non-performing assets (NPAs) to 1.5-1.6% of total advances and Net NPAs to 0.15-0.2% by the end of the current financial year. Additionally, the bank plans to undertake the sale of ₹200 crore in bad loans to an asset reconstruction company (ARC) during the current financial year.
The bank expects its gold loan book to cross ₹1.5 lakh crore in the current financial year, supported by robust demand. According to Kumar's statements to PTI, the gold loan segment is likely to grow about 20% this year, though at a slower pace compared to last year's 30% growth due to a 30% decline in gold prices. Currently, the gold loan portfolio stands at around ₹1.25 lakh crore, and the book should exceed ₹1.5 lakh crore during this financial year at the anticipated growth rate. Kumar emphasized that gold loan is safe lending for banks, being income-generating and supporting small business growth rather than consumption loans.
Kumar revealed that RAM (Retail, Agriculture, and MSME) constitutes 65% of the overall loan book, while the remaining 35% is from corporate lending. As reported by PTI, the bank wants to maintain this ratio going forward, with RAM having huge capacity for growth and significant opportunities in agriculture and MSMEs. The bank's strategy focuses on maintaining a balanced portfolio with emphasis on income-generating retail and agricultural lending segments.
