The second largest private sector lender, ICICI Bank, is likely to report stable growth in its core business in Q3FY26, but markets will keenly eye whether its incumbent MD, CEO Sandeep Bakhshi will continue as the bank chief as his tenures ends in October 2026, analysts say. The bank is set to report its Q3FY26 earnings Saturday.
Bakhshi has been the chief of ICICI Bank since October 15, 2018. For the re-appointment of a MD, CEO or whole-time Director (WTD) in private sector banks, the lender must submit the complete application to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) at least six months before the expiry of the incumbent’s term of office. Private banks typically submit CEO re-appointment application well before six months deadline, banking industry experts say.
“ICICI Bank is likely to post yet another steady quarter, with steady loan growth and deposit growth. We expect broadly steady/improving net interest margin (NIM), largely benefiting from CRR (cash reserve ratio) cut impact. That said, we monitor the commentary on future trends,” said Elara Securities in a report. “Slippages are likely to rise marginally sequentially, driven by agriculture slippages. Commentary on softer aspects (management continuation) will be the key variable, going forward,” it added.
ICICI Bank had reported a modest 5 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in Q2FY26 with standalone net profit at Rs 12,359 crore amid a decline in provisions, including towards non-performing assets (NPAs) and further improvement in asset quality.
According to brokerage Axis Securities, ICICI Bank’s business growth is expected to remain soft and credit-deposit (CD) ratio could remain steady. Its NIM, per Axis Securities, are expected to move with a mild positive bias. The bank management’s commentary on overall growth, especially in the unsecured book will be key monitorables, the brokerage said.
BNP Paribas Research, meanwhile, says ICICI Bank’s balance sheet remains protected by heavy excess provisioning and healthy capitalisation. It currently also enjoys higher share of low cost deposits, and therefore, a funding cost edge over its nearest competitors. This has helped the bank gather loan market share in prime categories.
“ICICI Bank’s annualised ROE has broken through the 18% barrier in recent quarters, partly aided by low credit costs. It is trading at 2.3x 1-year forward core P/BV and is still attractive vis-à-vis what we see as a sustainable core ROE of 17-18%,” BNP Paribas said. ENDS
Published on January 16, 2026
