Punjab National Bank
NSE:PNB
Punjab National Bank
Founded in 1894, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has grown from its humble beginnings in Lahore to secure its place as one of India’s largest and most trusted financial institutions. Its journey portrays a testament to resilience, adaptability, and customer-focused evolution. PNB emerged initially to provide financial services that catered to the needs of Indian businesses and individuals, carving a niche by staying deeply rooted in the community. Over the decades, the bank has expanded its reach across the nation, embracing technological advancements and diversifying its offerings to include a wide range of products such as retail and corporate banking, treasury operations, insurance, and investment services.
PNB thrives on its core operations of accepting deposits and extending credit to individuals and businesses, earning interest income in the process. Like any traditional commercial bank, the differential between the interest rate it earns from loans and the rate it pays on deposits forms the bedrock of its revenue model. In addition to interest income, PNB harnesses income from other streams such as fee-based services, commissions, and treasury management. By managing assets and liabilities astutely along with maintaining a robust risk management framework, PNB navigates the dynamic financial landscape, aiming to enhance shareholder value while simultaneously fulfilling its commitment to economic growth and financial inclusion in India.
Founded in 1894, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has grown from its humble beginnings in Lahore to secure its place as one of India’s largest and most trusted financial institutions. Its journey portrays a testament to resilience, adaptability, and customer-focused evolution. PNB emerged initially to provide financial services that catered to the needs of Indian businesses and individuals, carving a niche by staying deeply rooted in the community. Over the decades, the bank has expanded its reach across the nation, embracing technological advancements and diversifying its offerings to include a wide range of products such as retail and corporate banking, treasury operations, insurance, and investment services.
PNB thrives on its core operations of accepting deposits and extending credit to individuals and businesses, earning interest income in the process. Like any traditional commercial bank, the differential between the interest rate it earns from loans and the rate it pays on deposits forms the bedrock of its revenue model. In addition to interest income, PNB harnesses income from other streams such as fee-based services, commissions, and treasury management. By managing assets and liabilities astutely along with maintaining a robust risk management framework, PNB navigates the dynamic financial landscape, aiming to enhance shareholder value while simultaneously fulfilling its commitment to economic growth and financial inclusion in India.
Strong Profit Growth: Net profit for Q3 FY26 reached INR 5,100 crores, up 13.13% year-on-year, with operating profit also growing 13% and surpassing guidance.
Asset Quality Improvement: Gross NPA reduced to 3.19% and net NPA to 0.32%, both showing consistent improvement and meeting or beating bank’s targets.
Guidance Maintained: Management reaffirmed credit growth guidance at 11–12%, deposit growth at 9–10%, and NIM guidance for the full year, despite near-term margin pressure.
Margin Pressure: NIM dipped in Q3 due to repo rate cuts and limited deposit repricing, with management expecting stabilization and eventual improvement as deposit repricing completes by Q1/Q2 FY27.
Proactive Provisioning: The bank made an additional floating provision of INR 955 crores to prepare for ECL transition, keeping provision coverage ratio high at 96.99%.
Digital Momentum: Digital loans and transactions are growing rapidly, with 95% of transactions now digital and new digital products launched.
Treasury Gains: Q3 included a significant treasury gain from a stake sale (INR 912 crores), but normalized treasury income remains stable at INR 1,300–1,500 crores per quarter.
Consistent Efficiency Gains: Cost-to-income ratio improved to 51.91% from 54.16% and ROA and ROE both advanced year-on-year.
