After stabilising the quarterly net profit at above Rs 5,000 crore, Punjab National Bank managing director and CEO Ashok Chandra has said that the next task is to take it to the Rs 6,000 crore milestone.

The key parameters have been in place over the last four quarters and the core operating profit momentum remains strong. Chandra believes that the state-run bank will be able to deliver a quarterly net profit of Rs 6,000 crore in the near future, driven by robust core income and a declining ratio of bad loans.

For the fiscal second quarter ended September 2026, PNB posted a net profit of Rs 5,532 crore, up 12.8% over the year-ago period.For the previous three quarters - from Q3 FY26 to Q4 of that fiscal and Q1 of FY27 - the bank reported net profits of Rs 5,100 crore, Rs 5,225 crore and Rs 5,253 crore, respectively.

Similarly, the lender’s quarterly operating profit has consistently hit the Rs 7,000 crore mark since the previous financial year. In Q1 of FY26, PNB posted an operating profit of Rs 7,081 crore, with subsequent figures for Q2, Q3 and Q4 of that fiscal year coming in at Rs 7,227 crore, Rs 7,481 crore and Rs 7,500 crore, respectively. In the current fiscal year, the bank recorded an operating profit of Rs 7,519 crore in Q1 and Rs 7,532 crore for the quarter ended 30 September 2026.   

Despite treasury income declining by over Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 753 crore in the second quarter - down from Rs 1,769 crore a year ago - the bank’s core operating profit (excluding treasury and recoveries) remained robust.

Chandra noted that the bank has a strong visibility for future credit growth, with the loan pipeline standing at Rs 1.58 lakh crore. “The bank sanctioned corporate credit of Rs 4 lakh crore in FY26. During the first half of this financial year, we have already crossed more than Rs 2.5 lakh crore of sanctions in corporate credit,” he said.

Chandra, however, is betting on the RAM (retail, agriculture and MSME) plank to push loan growth and earn higher yields. “Our focus on retail, agriculture and MSME continues to guide our efforts towards building a diversified and resilient advances book,” he emphasized.

After posting a 12.5% growth in the September quarter to take the domestic loan book to Rs 12.57 lakh crore, PNB expects 1% to 2% higher growth in the third quarter due to the festive season. In total gross advances, including the global book, the bank reported a 14.7% YoY growth during the September quarter, reaching Rs 13.41 lakh crore.

The bank’s retail loan book grew 16.3% YoY to Rs 2.72 lakh crore in the September quarter, while advances to the MSME segment rose 19.8% to Rs 2.15 lakh crore and agriculture grew by 14.4% to Rs 2.10 lakh crore.

Corporate loans also rose 10.9% to Rs 5.35 lakh crore as of 30 September 2026.  

“We could have grown 17% to 18% in the corporate loan book. But we have shed Rs 58,000 crore of low-yielding advances. This activity will continue in Q3 and Q4 as well. From all profitability angles, the bank will be well-poised after the end of this financial year,” Chandra said.

The full-fiscal loan growth target is set at 12% to 13%, while deposit growth is projected at 9% to 10%. 

In a bid to give retail growth a boost, the bank has been expanding its branch network. “We have set the target of opening 250 branches during this financial year, with particular emphasis on strengthening our footprint in the southern and western regions. We have already opened 162 branches, out of which 119 are in the southern and western regions,” said Chandra.

The bank has raised $2.7 billion via foreign currency non-resident (Bank), or FCNR(B), deposits and utilised this liquidity partly to shed high-cost bulk deposits. The bulk deposit component fell to 17% at the end of the September quarter, from 19% in the previous quarter.

“The Reserve Bank of India’s repo rate hike by 25 basis points will also help us to boost our net interest margins (NIMs). We are very comfortable meeting the guidance of 2.6% to 2.7% in NIM for FY27, given that we are already at 2.58% now,” Chandra said. 

The bank is looking to recover Rs 13,000 crore from bad loans in FY27, with Rs 5,594 crore already coming during the first half of the fiscal year. “We expect recovery to happen in the range of Rs 3,500 crore in the third quarter,”he added.

New verticals such as supply chain finance, cash management services and credit cards are also gearing up to scale operations.

Earlier in July, Chandra stated that he expects PNB to enter the world’s top 100 banks within the next two years, driven by stronger credit growth, improved profitability and expansion into new business segments.Currently ranked 125 in terms of assets, PNB aims to join State Bank of India and HDFC Bank as the only Indian lenders in the global top-100 league.