The Indian bank has reported over Rs 700 crore in profits from the sale of Priority Sector Loan Certificates (PSLCs) so far this fiscal, capitalizing on its growing focus on progress in priority sectors. agriculture, small businesses and MSMEs.

The Chennai-based lender on Monday reported a 36 per cent year-on-year rise in its second quarter net profit to Rs 2,706 crore, helped by higher interest income and lower provisioning charges . Speaking to the media on Tuesday, SL Jain, MD and CEO, said profit from sale of PSLCs increased from Rs 479 crore in FY23 to Rs 657 crore in FY24. We have made a profit of Rs 727 crore so far in FY25. We are growing this business (PSLC), which is profitable and giving good returns,” Jain told FE.

According to RBI According to the guidelines, all registered commercial banks must allocate 40% of their adjusted net bank credit to priority sector lending (PSL), which includes loans to agriculture and related activities, MSMEhousing and microcredit. Banks that exceed their PSL targets sell PSLCs to lenders that do not meet their targets.

Since September 2024, Indian BankPSL advances of Rs stood at Rs 1.88 lakh crore, or 44% of adjusted net bank credit. Of this, agricultural advances constituted the largest share at Rs 87,896 crore, followed by loans to unincorporated farmers (Rs 81,246 crore) and slightly weaker sections (Rs 52,434 crore).

The increase in PSL can be attributed to Indian Bank’s continued focus on retail, agriculture and MSME (RAM) on business loans. In the September quarter, the RAM segment accounted for 63 per cent of the bank’s Rs 5.13 lakh-crore domestic advances, with the rest coming from corporate loans. Total RAM advances increased by 14% year-on-year to Rs 3.25 lakh crore, while corporate loans saw a 9% increase to Rs 1.88 lakh crore.

Jain said the bank’s overall credit growth would be between 11% and 13%, as reported earlier, while deposits are expected to grow between 8% and 10% in the current financial year.

“As far as recoveries are concerned, we guided Rs 7,000-7,500 crore earlier. We would like to stick to this goal,” said the general manager.