IDBI Bank Wrote Off Rs45,693 Crore Bad Loans and Recovered Just 8% in 7 Years
IDBI Bank Ltd, which has received multiple bailouts in the past few years, is the latest to join the list of lenders that wrote off tens of thousand crore rupees as bad loans. The Bank was re-categorised as a private sector lender in January 2019 after the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) increased its stake to 51% in the lender. During the past seven years, IDBI Bank wrote off total bad loans worth Rs45,693 crore but could recover just 8% of it after spending more than Rs29 crore, as the analysis of annual reports of the Bank shows. The analysis is done by well-known activist Vivek Velankar as per response from IDBI Bank under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.  
 
The government has repeatedly infused large sums of money to bailout the Bank and help it meet capital adequacy requirements; this in addition to LIC acquiring a 51% stake in a bailout move. 
 
IDBI Bank flatly refused to share information on loans of Rs100 crore and above that were written off, the names of these borrowers and the money recovered from these big defaulters with the activist.
 
As in the cases of the State Bank of India (SBI), Bank of Baroda (BoB), Bank of Maharashtra (BoM), and Union Bank of India (UBI) that have been reported by Moneylife, this is yet another example of massive ‘technical’ write-off with minuscule recoveries, leading to frequent recapitalisation of banks with the taxpayers’ money. Such write-offs also debunk the aggressive posturing by the government and policy-makers about their so-called recovery efforts. 
 
Rather than furnishing information about the written off debts, IDBI Bank directed the RTI activist to find out details for himself from the Bank’s annual reports for it. Mr Velankar did that and found that during FY13-14 to FY19-20, IDBI Bank wrote off bad loans of Rs45,693 crore, including technical or prudential write-offs and loans written off other than technical or prudential. The Bank recovered just Rs3,704 in the same period crore for which it incurred an expense of Rs29.34 crore.
 
 
(Source: Vivek Velankar, Pune)
 
As on March 2020, IDBI Bank has shown Rs40,313.95 crore as the written off amount, of which it had recovered Rs1,247.60 during the fiscal year. The annual report, however, does not mention the period during which this amount has been accumulated. 
 
What is even stranger is the reply given by IDBI Bank to Mr Velankar about sharing information on loan accounts worth Rs100 crore and more that were written off. In its reply to the RTI, the lender says, "Sought information is disproportionately diverting the resources of the Bank; Hence the same is exempted from disclosure under section 7(9) of the RTI Act."
 
Further, IDBI Bank ought to have published on its website the names of big defaulters whose loans of Rs100 crore and above have been written off. Yet, in its reply the Bank told Mr Velankar, "The information sought is pertaining to the customers/ borrowers of the bank, which is in the nature of commercial confidence and also held such information by the bank in its fiduciary relationship, and hence the same is exempted from disclosure under section (8)(1)(d) and 8(1)(e) of RTI Act. Further, there is no larger public interest that warrants disclosure of such information under RTI Act." 
 
However, much of this information has also been published by the All India Bank Depositors Association (AIBEA), and, yet, IDBI Bank’s sympathies seem to lie with the big defaulters.
 
The amounts written off by the IDBI Bank eat into its profits and cause a range of charges to be slapped on ordinary depositors. Yet, the Bank asserts that there is no larger public interest involved, even though it relates directly to money in the form of savings accounts and deposits made by common people.
 
Yet, almost all PSBs (public sector banks) hide behind the so-called fiduciary relations, overlooking the judgement given by the Supreme Court. In November 2015, a division bench of justice MY Eqbal and justice C Nagappan had held that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cannot withhold information citing 'fiduciary relations' under the RTI Act. (Read: RBI cannot withhold information under RTI citing ‘fiduciary relations’: SC)
 
"In the instant case, the RBI does not place itself in a fiduciary relationship with the financial institutions (though, in word it puts itself to be in that position) because, the reports of the inspections, statements of the bank, information related to the business obtained by the RBI are not under the pretext of confidence or trust. In this case neither the RBI nor the Banks act in the interest of each other. By attaching an additional 'fiduciary' label to the statutory duty, the regulatory authorities have intentionally or unintentionally created an in terrorem effect," the apex court had said.
 
All banks are mandated to furnish information to RBI on bad loans, loans written off and recovery on a periodic basis as part of the statutory requirements. Under such a situation, banks cannot even use the clause of fiduciary relation to deny information under the RTI Act, since this information that they have, had already been submitted to the RBI as a statutory obligation. 
 
As the Supreme Court had rightly pointed out, RBI and the banks have sidestepped the general public’s demand to give the requisite information on the pretext of 'fiduciary relationship' and 'economic interest'. This attitude of the RBI will only attract more suspicion and disbelief in them. RBI as a regulatory authority should work to make the banks accountable to their actions, the apex court had said.
 
Mr Velankar, president of the Pune-based Sajag Nagrik Manch, also says the same thing. He says, "If this information is in commercial confidence or held under fiduciary relation, then how did SBI share the names of its top 225 defaulters, whose loans were written off? Or does the definition of commercial confidence or fiduciary relations change with every bank? Moreover, why do the names and loan amounts written off by these big defaulters need to be kept a secret?" 
 
 "When a common borrower defaults, the same bank publishes his name and all the details through advertisements in newspapers. Why do they want to keep the names of bigger defaulters hidden? Why don’t the 'confidentiality' and 'fiduciary relation' clauses apply while publicising the names of the common borrowers?" he asks.
 
Technically speaking, when debts are written off, they are removed as assets from the balance sheet because the bank does not expect to recover payment. 
 
This practice is frowned upon by experts but is routinely done by banks as part of their tax management clean-up process. The beneficiaries are invariably some of our biggest industrialist defaulters. 
 
 In contrast, when a bad debt is written down, some of the bad debt value remains as an asset because the bank expects to recover it. However, as SBI, BoB, BoM and UBI have shown, most of the times, there is no recovery or negligible recovery for the amounts written off.    
 
As reported by Moneylife, Union Bank of India wrote off bad debt worth Rs26,072.81 crore between FY11-12 and FY19-20 (this information pertains only to loans of over Rs100 crore).
 
 
Bank of Maharashtra has written off bad loans of over Rs7,402 crore in the past years, while recovering a paltry 4% in over eight years through recovery efforts. The lender wrote off bad debts worth Rs7,402 crore during four out of the past eight years, while recovering just Rs253.55 crore. (Read: Bank of Maharashtra Writes Off Rs7,100 Crore Bad Loans; Recovers Just 4% in 8 Years)
 
From 2012 to 2020, BoB had technically written off 97 accounts with bad debts of Rs100 crore and more. These add up to Rs21,476.89 crore over eight years, while recovery in that same period is just 4.91% or Rs1,056.53 crore. (Read: Bank of Baroda Follows SBI, Writes Off Rs21,474 Crore in Bad Loans; Recovers only Rs1,057 Crore in Past 8 Years)
 
Similarly, from FY12-13 to FY19-20, SBI, the country's largest lender, wrote off bad loans worth Rs1.23 lakh crore of bad debt but recovered a paltry Rs8,969 crore. (Read: SBI Writes Off Rs1.23 Lakh Crore of Bad Debt, Recovers Paltry Rs8,969 Crore in 8 Years!)
 
A few months ago, there were a lot of heated arguments about written off loans of big defaulters. In April, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had said that Indian banks have technically written off a staggering amount of Rs68,607 crore due from 50 top wilful defaulters, including absconding diamantaire Mehul Choksi. RBI had revealed this information in reply to an RTI query filed by Saket Gokhale. 
 
 However, at that time, everyone from the government, including the Union finance ministry and supporters of the government had insisted that technical write-off does not mean waiving off loans and efforts are on for the recovery of these written off loans.
 
Meanwhile, State-run lenders continue to write off huge amounts of bad loans without any real effort on recovery. All this happens, as Mr Velaknar has rightly pointed out, due to lack of checks and balances in banks by the regulator and the concerned authorities. In the end, it is the common bank customer who pays for all this financial manipulation and bad book-keeping, either through increased charges for every service or by receiving lower interest rates from the lenders on deposits or savings account. 
 
Comments
ssk.pab
5 years ago
One more Public Sector Bank squandering away public money-and the responsible authority - GOI - remaining silent!!!
hamungel
5 years ago
These banks seem to have set themselves a recovery target of 8% only.
karan.kabirnagar
5 years ago
All State owened PSU banks should merged in two or three banks. No government owned bank should be sale. This shows government,s negligence about banks. No bank should be privatised. Stop privatised rhe nationalized banks.
karan.kabirnagar
5 years ago
Now government want there should be only four State owened PSU nationalized banks. My suggestions is that Modi government should merge all remaining eight banks into these four banks. 1. Pb&Sind bank, bank of mahrastra. Bank of India, should merged in Punjab National Bank. 2 Union Bank of India, central Bank of India, Uco Bank merged in Bank of Baroda. In this way there should be be four main banks. No bank should be privatised. No discrimination in PSU banks. Stop privatised the banks. In this way bank can run efficiently.
s5rwav
Replied to karan.kabirnagar comment 5 years ago
If Bigger is Better then All Private Sector Banks should be Merged into One Bigger Private Sector Bank. I am Babubhai Vaghela from Ahmedabad. Thanks.
karan.kabirnagar
5 years ago
Modi government should merge remaining 8 Eight State owened PSU in four PSU, s. Stop privatised the banks. In this way only four banks can efficiently run the economy.
s5rwav
Replied to karan.kabirnagar comment 5 years ago
Smaller the Better or Bigger the Better so far as the Public Sector Banks of India is Concerned is an Unanswered Question. Smaller Private Sector Banks doing Better is Another Unanswered Question. Love to Know. I am Babubhai Vaghela from Ahmedabad. Thanks.
s5rwav
5 years ago
Dear #ChiefElectionCommissioner of India and Election Commissioners of India, #NoTicketModi No Ticket to Mr Narendra Modi the #BJPPM for Unabated Giant Financial Frauds and Open Brazen Loot of Thousands of Crores of Public Money. Election Commission of India Must Refuse Ticket to Mr Narendra Modi to Contest Any Election hereafter as that is What the Political Accountability in India that is Missing but is Desperately Needed. I am Babubhai Vaghela from Ahmedabad. Thanks.
Newme
Replied to s5rwav comment 5 years ago
Congress and BJP are alternatively setting new records in looting the Banks.
s5rwav
Replied to Newme comment 5 years ago
Why should #WeThePeopleOfIndia be Victim of Political Corruption? I am Babubhai Vaghela from Ahmedabad. Thanks.
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