Ashok Chandra, Managing Director and CEO of Punjab National Bank believes that there will be no impact of the new labour codes on the PNB’s wage bill. In an interview, Chandra discussed a range of subjects including measures to reduce fresh slippage. Excerpts:
Given the government’s focus on capital expenditure, do you believe you can meet the rising credit demand across various sectors?
Absolutely. As of now also, credit to MSME is growing at 19 per cent. As we are reducing IBPC (Inter-Bank Participation Certificates), core retail has grown by more than 18.5 per cent. Agriculture credit has grown over 11 per cent. We remain fully aligned with our core strategic objectives for this financial year and are currently executing them as planned. Corporate loan book is now ₹3.12 lakh crore, which is the sanctioned amount till December 31, 2025. Of this, around ₹1 lakh crore is yet to be disbursed in Q4 of this fiscal and Q1 and Q2 of the next financial year.
With what we have been doing, corporate loan book would have grown more than 11 to 12 per cent, except the IBPC, which is at a very, very low rate. The reported 8–9 per cent growth rate reflects our strategic decision to reduce exposure to IBPC and other low-yielding advances. We intend to maintain this disciplined approach through Q4 as we phase out these low-margin assets entirely.
Which sector has the higher share in fresh slippage during the quarter under consideration and also during the 9-month period?
For the current quarter, agriculture accounted for approximately ₹800 crore, while MSME and Retail contributed ₹400 crore each. For the nine-month period, total slippages stood at ₹4,518 crore, down slightly from ₹4,557 crore year-over-year. The MSME sector represented the largest share during this nine-month period, totaling ₹2,500 crore.
What are the plans to further reduce reduce slippage?
Our analysis revealed that 80 per cent of slippages occurred in accounts below ₹10 lakh. To address this, we implemented a mandatory digital sanctioning process for loans in this category, effective November 1, 2025. By utilising stringent, unbiased Business Rule Engines (BRE), we have ensured that only viable proposals are approved in our pilot geographies. Based on these results, we will mandate this automated, zero-manual underwriting process nationwide, starting February 1.
Given that the recent rate cuts have pressured your Net Interest Income (NII) and led to a slight de-growth, when do you expect the full impact of lower deposit rates to materialise?
We anticipate the meaningful impact of deposit repricing to begin in Q1 of FY27. Currently, 70 per cent of our deposit book has already been repriced. An additional 21 per cent is slated for repricing in the current quarter (Q4 FY26), with the remaining 9 per cent following in the first two months of FY27. While repricing is ongoing, the full benefit to our interest expenses will be most visible starting in the latter half of Q1 and into Q2 of FY27.
And if there is another rate reduction in February, then Q4 and Q1 of FY27 will be affected?
Definitely. Then we need to look into our entire deposit interest rate as well because as of now, 125 basis point rate cut has happened. But the entire lot has not passed on the deposits. We have passed on hardly 60-70 basis points on deposits. We have enough cushion for adjustment in our deposit rate. We will see that if any further rate cut happens, then definitely we will have to pass it on to the depositors.
What has been the net increase in headcount over the last nine months, and what are your hiring projections for the remainder of the fiscal year or the next six months?
Our total headcount has remained stable over the past 18 months, as the volume of retirements has offset new recruitment. We have maintained a consistent workforce of approximately 1.03 lakh employees since the start of the financial year. Consequently, there has been no net increase in staff strength.
Any particular reason for this?
Our digital transformation strategy is significantly optimising our human resource requirements. By automating processes such as the digital sanctioning of loans up to ₹10 lakh, we have reduced the need for manual intervention at the branch level. Through centralisation and the integration of digital tools across all operations, we are able to manage natural attrition and retirements without the need for large-scale replacement hiring.
What will be impact of new labour code on your Wage Bill?
There will not be any impact because we don’t have any contractual worker which means all 1.03 lakh are on regular payroll.
