State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur gets highest CRISIL rating
By Our Banking Bureau | 31 Jan 2005
| Rs. 2 Billion Bonds Issue | AAA/Stable |
CRISIL has awarded its highest AAA rating to the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur's (SBBJ) bonds, reflecting SBBJ's increasing operational and financial integration with the State Bank of India (India's largest bank, rated AAA/stable by CRISIL). SBI holds 75 per cent equity in SBBJ, and provides it technical and management support. CRISIL believes that the growing integration implies strong support from SBI when needed. The credit profile of SBBJ is therefore equivalent to its parent.
The bank's standalone credit profile is strengthened by its healthy resource profile, comfortable capitalisation levels and an adequate liquidity profile, but is moderated by its small size and the significant geographical concentration of its business. The bank's increasing integration with SBI would allow it to overcome these constraints.
SBBJ is the fourth largest of SBI's seven associate banks in terms of total assets, as on March 31, 2004. The bank's assets stood at Rs202.56 billion as on March 31, 2004. Out of SBBJ's 822 branches, 146 are outside its bastion of Rajasthan, spread over important centres in the country. The bank has strong retail base in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It reported a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs1.08 billion for the first half of 2004-05, against a PAT of Rs3.02 billion for the financial year 2003-04.
Outlook: CRISIL feels SBBJ will continue to benefit from the support provided by its parent, SBI.
