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PRESS RELEASES 2005
UCO Bank has recorded a healthy growth of 24.53% in its Total Business during the half-year ended 30th September 2005, compared to the corresponding half-year of last fiscal when it had achieved a year-on-year growth of 20.25%. The Bank has achieved a total business figure of Rs.80,960 crore as on 30.9.05, as against Rs.65,013 crore as on 30.9.04. While Deposits have increased from Rs.42,211 crore to Rs.49,816 crore (increase of 18.02% year-on-year), the growth in Advances has been still more impressive -36.58% y-o-y from Rs.22,803 crore to Rs.31,144 crore. The corresponding rates of growth last year were 14.62% and 32.27% respectively. Buoyed by this sound growth in its business, UCO Bank's domestic market share too has registered a corresponding increase. With respect to Deposits, its domestic market share has marginally gone up from 2.35% as of 30th Sept 2004 to 2.36% as on 30th Sept 2005. In Advances, the increase in domestic market share has been much greater - from 2.19% to 2.32%. There has also been a 26% increase in the Bank's Business-per-Employee during the period. For the half-year ended Sept '05, the Bank has posted an Operating Profit of Rs.326 crore and a Net Profit of Rs.143 crore. The year-on-year Operating Profit recorded a decline of Rs.112 crore (from Rs.438 crore as of Sept '04) on account of
The decline of Rs.140 crore in Net Profit (from Rs.283 crore as of Sept '04) is due to provision of Rs.167 crore made for Mark-to-Market depreciation on transfer of Securities from AFS category to HTM category, in addition to the above items. During the half-year, Total Revenue (excluding Treasury income) went up by 9.11% vis-à-vis that in the corresponding half-year of last fiscal. The Bank has recorded an increase in its Net Interest Income which, at Rs.770 crore, represents an improvement of about 10% over the Rs.704 crore as of Sept '04. The Bank is way ahead of the national goal set by the Government for fresh disbursement of agricultural credit of at least 30% of previous year's outstanding balance. Among the highlights of the half-yearly performance is an improved Recovery performance in NPA accounts. At Rs.186 crore, this Recovery effort has been better than the Rs.160 crore recorded in Sept '04. This also contributed to a significant reduction in the over-all NPA percentage. As on 30th Sept '05, Gross NPA Ratio came down to 4.23% (as against 5.70% in Sept '04), and Net NPA Ratio now stands only at 2.62% (compared to 3.09% in Sept '04). In the area of Insurance business ("Bancassurance'), total Commission earned by the Bank during the half-year amounted to Rs.298 lacs, which represents a growth of 52.68% over the Commission amount earned in the half-year ended Sept '04. UCO Bank maintained No.1 position as on 30th Sept '05 among the banks which have entered into arrangement with Life Insurance Corporation of India for Bancassurance business. UCO Bank turned a new leaf in its overseas presence with the opening of its Representative Office at Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia in September 2005. This center is expected to further boost the Bank's business at other overseas centers functioning in the region, viz Singapore and Hong Kong. The Bank plans to make similar foray into a few other countries as well, viz Dubai, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. As part of its current drive for augmenting Non-Interest Income, UCO Bank has recently entered into tie-up arrangements with Reliance Mutual Fund as well as with Templeton, apart from similar tie-up made with the market leaders UTI Mutual Fund earlier, for selling their Mutual Fund products through its vast network of branches. All these initiatives are expected to open up fresh avenues for the Bank in earning considerable amount of fee-based income. Amongst the current technology initiatives of the Bank, 14 branches in four metro locations - out of 250 planned during the fiscal - have since been integrated under "Anywhere-Branch-Banking" project on a pilot basis. Its Core Banking Solution (CBS) project is on the final stage and the Bank is slated to select the CBS vendor very soon. It has already covered 100% of its branches under computerization. The Bank is going to host the Bankers' Conference (BANCON) 2005 in November at Kolkata, with an idea to focus on redefining "opportunities at the bottom of the pyramid" - for large cross-section of the rural community.
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