HDFC Bank chairman Rajiv Kumar reassures shareholders on governance, says CASA and NIM to improve as merger impact eases; board vows 'zero tolerance' for unethical practices

At the annual general meeting, HDFC Bank's chairman Rajiv Kumar framed governance as robust despite the structural changes from the HDFC Ltd merger, notably in the CASA ratio and NIMs, and projected improvements over the next few quarters

The merger has resulted in structural changes in our balance sheet, primarily in the CASA ratio and our NIMs. As we continue our progress on incremental deposit market share, and with stepped-up focus on the consumption side of the economy, we are confident of improving these metrics in a few quarters.

Deposits rose 10.8% YoY to ₹30,386 billion during the June quarter, while advances rose 13.3% to ₹30,115 billion.

More than 95% of customers taking a home loan from HDFC Bank for the first time now also open a savings account, underscoring cross-selling opportunities created by the merger.

HDFC Bank's market share in MSME lending is over 20%, it ranks first in 15 states and sits among the top three in 25 states, across 721 districts with more than 4,000 branches—about half in semi-urban and rural areas.

Investments in technology include upgrades to the core tech stack, expansion of in-house engineering teams and the deployment of generative AI through its in-house platform, NEEV.

Asset quality remains solid: gross NPAs at 1.17% as of June 30, 2026, up from 1.15% at end-March, while net NPAs stand at 0.41%.

The board reaffirmed a zero-tolerance stance on unethical practices, promising swift, case-by-case action and reinforced control functions and governance guardrails.

Context matters: after Atanu Chakraborty's abrupt March resignation, external law firms reviewed the bank's governance and reported no evidence to substantiate concerns, while the bank continued to refine governance practices, including oversight and ethical standards.