The Finance Ministry has called a meeting with the heads of public sector banks (PSBs) on Wednesday, August 20, to review their financial performance for the first quarter (Q1) (April to June) of the financial year 2025–26. This meeting will be led by M Nagaraju, the Financial Services Secretary.
In Q1 Public Sector Banks collectively earned a record profit of ₹44,218 crore. This is an 11% increase compared to the same quarter last year. Most PSBs showed positive growth. Last year, during this same quarter, they made ₹39,974 crore, so the profit increased by ₹4,244 crore.
Q1 Performance Highlights of Some Public Sector Banks
- SBI (State Bank of India) alone made ₹19,160 crore, which is 43% of the total profit made by all 12 PSBs. This is a 12% increase compared to its profit in the same quarter last year and remains the largest and most profitable public bank in India.
- Indian Overseas Bank had the highest growth. It’s profit rose by 76% to ₹1,111 crore.
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Punjab & Sind Bank’s profit grew by 48% to ₹269 crore.
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Central Bank of India profit grew by 32.8% to ₹1,169 crore.
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Indian Bank profit grew by 23.7% to ₹2,973 crore.
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Bank of Maharashtra profit grew by 23.2% to ₹1,593 crore.
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However Punjab National Bank (PNB) saw a big drop. It reported a decline in profit during this period. Its profit fell by 48% to ₹1,675 crore from ₹3,252 crore last year.
Overall, most public sector banks earnings grew significantly, showing better financial performance this quarter compared to last year and the government wants to review their progress and discuss future plans in the upcoming meeting.
The meeting is likely aimed at understanding the reasons behind both the overall strong performance and why some banks like PNB underperformed. It could also involve discussing strategies to maintain or improve profitability, manage risks, and strengthen the banking sector further.