Rating Rationale
April 13, 2018 | Mumbai
ICICI Bank Limited
 Rating Reaffirmed
 
Rating Action
Upper Tier-II Bonds (Under Basel II) Aggregating Rs.8495 Crore CRISIL AAA/Stable (Reaffirmed)
Tier-I Perpetual Bonds (Under Basel II) Aggregating Rs.518 Crore  CRISIL AAA/Stable (Reaffirmed)
Bonds/Debentures Aggregating Rs.629 Crore* CRISIL AAA/Stable (Reaffirmed)
1 crore = 10 million
Refer to annexure for Details of Instruments & Bank Facilities
*Pertains to the erstwhile ICICI Ltd.'s debt instruments rated by CRISIL; these instruments were transferred to ICICI Bank following the merger of ICICI Ltd with ICICI Bank
Detailed Rationale

CRISIL has reaffirmed its rating on ICICI Bank Limited (ICICI Bank) debt instruments at 'CRISIL AAA/Stable'.
 
The ratings on ICICI Bank's debt instruments continue to reflect the bank's healthy capitalisation, strong market position and comfortable resource profile. These strengths are tempered somewhat by the pressure on the bank's asset quality from exposures to highly leveraged corporate groups. However, the bank's healthy capital position, coupled with its demonstrated ability to raise capital and steady pre-provisioning profits cushions the bank's credit risk profile against asset quality risks. Meanwhile, the asset quality performance of the bank's retail asset portfolio that constitutes almost half of the bank's advances mix as on December 31, 2017 is expected to remain stable over the medium term.
 
CRISIL has taken note of ICICI Bank Board's response to the recent allegations of potential conflict of interest pertaining to the bank's exposure to Videocon group. CRISIL believes that this exposure, which has already been classified as a non-performing asset (NPA) with sizeable provisioning by the bank, is in itself not material in the context of its outstanding loan book or capital. Any further provisioning or even write-offs pertaining to that exposure are not likely to impact the bank's credit risk profile. CRISIL anticipates continuation in ICICI Banks' strategy of building upon its strong market position in the Indian wholesale and retail lending markets, while maintaining its healthy capitalization levels and strong liability franchise, even as it strives to improve its asset quality. CRISIL will also monitor developments pertaining to the ongoing investigations on the bank's exposure to Videocon group to watch out for any potential materiality in outcomes on areas like management stability or fund raising ability and suitably factor them in its rating.

Analytical Approach

For arriving at its ratings, CRISIL has combined the business and financial risk profiles of ICICI Bank and its subsidiaries.

Key Rating Drivers & Detailed Description
Strengths
* Healthy capitalisation: 
ICICI Bank had a sizeable networth of Rs 1,04,500 crore, and a strong Tier-I capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of 14.6% and overall CAR of  17.7% under Basel III as on December 31, 2017, making it amongst the well capitalised banks in India. The bank's networth coverage for net non-performing asset (NPA), while declined to 4.4 times as on December 31, 2017, remains higher than the industry average. ICICI Bank also has adequate flexibility to raise additional capital through the sale of stakes in subsidiaries (the bank has raised around Rs.14500 crore in the last couple of years). Given the bank's healthy cash accruals and demonstrated ability to raise capital, it is likely to maintain healthy capitalisation to support overall credit risk profile of the bank and also adequately cover for asset-side risks while pursuing credit growth over the medium term.
 
* Strong market position in the financial services sector
ICICI Bank is among the largest private-sector banks in India with an asset base of Rs 8.1 lakh crore as on December 31, 2017. It is also one of the three banks that has been classified as 'Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs)' by the Reserve Bank of India highlighting its significance to the overall financial system. The bank's management team has been instrumental in establishing strong market position for the bank and its subsidiaries. Size, scale and positioning are key strengths for the ICICI group in its various business segments. As a leading full-service universal banking group with a pan-India footprint, the ICICI group has a strong presence in life and general insurance, asset management, private equity and retail broking. The bank's wide geographical spread is reflected in its network of 4860 branches as on December 31, 2017.
 
* Healthy resource profile
Resource profile remains healthy, supported by high proportion of low-cost current account and savings account (CASA) deposits. CASA deposits, as a proportion of total deposits, remain healthy and had expanded to 50.4% as on December 31, 2017 while average CASA ratio was 45.7% for the nine months ended December 31, 2017. Further, total retail deposits constituted a high 74% of total deposits as on same date. This provides stability to the bank's resource profile. CRISIL believes that ICICI Bank's wide branch network and strong focus on digital banking will help it maintain higher-than-industry-average CASA levels and the bank will be able to maintain competitive funding cost over the medium term.
 
Weakness
* Asset quality performance remains sensitive to stress in the corporate sector
Asset quality of the bank is expected to remain under pressure in the near term. Gross NPAs have remained at elevated levels at 7.8% as on December 31, 2017 (7.9% in March 31 2017 and 5.2% as on March 31, 2016) which is higher than the average for private sector banks. The deterioration in asset quality has been primarily due to delinquencies in the bank's corporate loan book in the vulnerable sectors including infrastructure and iron & steel. With the revision in the RBI's framework for resolution of stressed assets in February 2018, the bank may witness further slippages from stressed accounts structured under various RBI schemes mainly from strategic debt restructuring (SDR) and Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of stressed Assets (S4A). However, with the expected resolution in fiscal 2019 of many large corporate NPAs referred under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy code (IBC) and estimated slowdown in the pace of fresh slippages to NPAs in the current fiscal, the pressure on the bank's asset quality is expected to reduce over the medium term.
 
Nevertheless, the bank has been increasing the proportion of retail assets, where asset quality performance has been and is expected to be stable over the medium term.  Moreover, the bank's steady pre-provision profits on the back of comfortable net interest margins and healthy fee based income continues to support its earnings profile despite increase in provisioning costs in fiscal 2018. Bank's provision coverage ratio has increased to 48.3% as on December 31, 2017 from ~40% as on March 31, 2017. While the increase in gross NPAs and the resultant increase in provisioning costs will impact the earnings profile of the bank in the near term, expected recoveries from stressed assets in the current fiscal coupled with improvement in credit offtake is expected to partly offset this impact. CRISIL expects the bank to take necessary measures to address the asset quality challenges and also, maintain its overall credit profile. The bank has demonstrated its resilience in the past while tiding over asset quality pressures faced in the aftermath of the global financial crisis by putting in place an institutionalized risk assessment framework involving enhanced control and monitoring mechanisms.
Outlook: Stable

CRISIL believes ICICI Bank will maintain its strong market position, healthy capitalisation, and comfortable resource profile. The bank will remain focused on growth in the secured asset classes over the medium term and will sustain its earnings levels above industry average. The outlook may be revised to 'Negative' if the bank witnesses higher-than-expected deterioration in its asset quality and earnings, or faces any other unexpected developments that may materially affect its ability to raise capital when required.

About the Bank

Promoted by the erstwhile ICICI Ltd, ICICI Bank was incorporated in 1994. In 2002, ICICI Ltd was merged with ICICI Bank. In August 2010, ICICI Bank acquired Bank of Rajasthan (BoR), enhancing its presence in northern and western India. ICICI Bank has a consolidated asset base of Rs 10.54 lakh crore as on December 31, 2017.
 
ICICI Bank reported a standalone profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 5757 crore for the nine months ended December 31, 2017, against PAT of Rs 7776 crore for the same period in fiscal 2017. At the consolidated level (with subsidiaries and other associate entities), ICICI Bank reported PAT of Rs 6570 crore in the nine months ended December 31, 2017 as against PAT of Rs 8106 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year.

Key Financial Indicators (Consolidated)
As On/For The Period Ended December 31, Unit 2017 2016
Total Assets Rs Cr. 10,53,677 9,62,897
Total income (net of interest expenses) Rs Cr. 59,777 58,088
Profit after tax Rs Cr. 6,570 8,106
Gross NPA* 7.82 7.20
Overall capital adequacy ratio* 17.65 15.98
Return on assets (annualised)* 0.97 1.40
* on a standalone basis for the bank

Any other information: Not applicable

Note on complexity levels of the rated instrument:
CRISIL complexity levels are assigned to various types of financial instruments. The CRISIL complexity levels are available on www.crisil.com/complexity-levels. Users are advised to refer to the CRISIL complexity levels for instruments that they consider for investment. Users may also call the Customer Service Helpdesk with queries on specific instruments.
Annexure - Details of Instrument(s)
ISIN Instrument Date of Issue Coupon Rate (%) Date of Maturity Issue Size Outstanding Rating with outlook
INE090A08PT6 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 29-Jan-10 8.81  29-Jan-25 1600 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08PQ2 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 12-Jan-10 8.9 12-Jan-25 150 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08PQ2 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 12-Jan-10 8.9 12-Jan-25 630 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08PH1 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 31-Aug-09 8.92 31-Aug-24 1000 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08PB4 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 26-Mar-09 9.95 26-Mar-24 1271 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08OV5 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 11-Nov-08 12 11-Nov-23 1100 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08OV5 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 11-Nov-08 12 11-Nov-23 400 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08OT9 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 22-Sep-08 11.25 22-Sep-23 1000 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08OH4 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 20-Jun-08 10 20-Jun-23 750 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08NH6 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 10-Jan-08 9.7 10-Jan-23 500 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08LJ6 Upper Tier II Bonds (Under Basel II) 15-Jan-07 9.4 15-Jan-22 94 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08LK4 Perpetual Tier 1 bonds(Under Basel II) 15-Jan-07 9.98 15-Jan-2106 18 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08NG8 Perpetual Tier 1 bonds(Under Basel II) 10-Jan-08 10.15 10-Jan-2107 199 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08NG8 Perpetual Tier 1 bonds(Under Basel II) 10-Jan-08 10.15 10-Jan-2107 301 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11473 Bonds* 3-Mar-99  Zero coupon 3-Mar-17 104.5 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11507 Bonds* 28-Apr-99 Zero coupon 28-Apr-17 108.3 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11523 Bonds* 16-Jun-99 Zero coupon 16-Nov-17 105.4 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08SQ6 Bonds 22-Jan-98 Zero coupon 21-Aug-20 16.9 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11309 Bonds 5-Oct-98 Zero coupon 5-Dec-22 137.9 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11531 Bonds 16-Jun-99 Zero coupon 16-Apr-23 18.3 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11341 Bonds 1-Dec-98 Zero coupon 1-May-23 57.1 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE005A11382 Bonds 11-Jan-99 Zero coupon 11-Jun-23 40.2 CRISIL AAA/Stable
INE090A08SP8 Bonds 22-Jan-98 Zero coupon 21-Jul-26 40.4 CRISIL AAA/Stable
*CRISIL is awaiting independent confirmation of redemption before withdrawing rating on these instruments
Annexure - Rating History for last 3 Years
  Current 2018 (History) 2017  2016  2015  Start of 2015
Instrument Type Quantum Rating Date Rating Date Rating Date Rating Date Rating Rating
Bond  LT  629  CRISIL AAA/Stable    No Rating Change  21-04-17  CRISIL AAA/Stable  13-12-16  CRISIL AAA    No Rating Change  CRISIL AAA/Stable 
Perpetual Tier-I Bonds (under Basel II)  LT  518  CRISIL AAA/Stable    No Rating Change    No Rating Change    No Rating Change    No Rating Change  CRISIL AAA/Stable 
Upper Tier-II Bonds (under Basel II)  LT  8495  CRISIL AAA/Stable    No Rating Change    No Rating Change    No Rating Change    No Rating Change  CRISIL AAA/Stable 
Table reflects instances where rating is changed or freshly assigned. 'No Rating Change' implies that there was no rating change under the release.
Links to related criteria
Rating Criteria for Banks and Financial Institutions
Rating Criteria for Hybrid Capital instruments issued by banks under Basel II guidelines

For further information contact:
Media Relations
Analytical Contacts
Customer Service Helpdesk
Saman Khan
Media Relations
CRISIL Limited
D: +91 22 3342 3895
B: +91 22 3342 3000
saman.khan@crisil.com

Naireen Ahmed
Media Relations
CRISIL Limited
D: +91 22 3342 1818
B: +91 22 3342 3000
naireen.ahmed@crisil.com

Jyoti Parmar
Media Relations
CRISIL Limited
D: +91 22 3342 1835
B: +91 22 3342 3000
 jyoti.parmar@crisil.com

Krishnan Sitaraman
Senior Director - CRISIL Ratings
CRISIL Limited
D:+91 22 3342 8070
krishnan.sitaraman@crisil.com


Rama Patel
Director - CRISIL Ratings
CRISIL Limited
D:+91 22 4254 1919
rama.patel@crisil.com


Kopal Sharma
Rating Analyst - CRISIL Ratings
CRISIL Limited
B:+91 22 3342 3000
Kopal.Sharma@crisil.com
Timings: 10.00 am to 7.00 pm
Toll free Number:1800 267 1301

For a copy of Rationales / Rating Reports:
CRISILratingdesk@crisil.com
 
For Analytical queries:
ratingsinvestordesk@crisil.com


 

Note for Media:
This rating rationale is transmitted to you for the sole purpose of dissemination through your newspaper / magazine / agency. The rating rationale may be used by you in full or in part without changing the meaning or context thereof but with due credit to CRISIL. However, CRISIL alone has the sole right of distribution (whether directly or indirectly) of its rationales for consideration or otherwise through any media including websites, portals etc.


About CRISIL Limited

CRISIL is a leading agile and innovative, global analytics company driven by its mission of making markets function better. We are India’s foremost provider of ratings, data, research, analytics and solutions. A strong track record of growth, culture of innovation and global footprint sets us apart. We have delivered independent opinions, actionable insights, and efficient solutions to over 1,00,000 customers.
 
We are majority owned by S&P Global Inc., a leading provider of transparent and independent ratings, benchmarks, analytics and data to the capital and commodity markets worldwide.
 
For more information, visit www.crisil.com 


Connect with us: TWITTER | LINKEDIN | YOUTUBE | FACEBOOK

About CRISIL Ratings
CRISIL Ratings is part of CRISIL Limited (“CRISIL”). We pioneered the concept of credit rating in India in 1987. CRISIL is registered in India as a credit rating agency with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”). With a tradition of independence, analytical rigour and innovation, CRISIL sets the standards in the credit rating business. We rate the entire range of debt instruments, such as, bank loans, certificates of deposit, commercial paper, non-convertible / convertible / partially convertible bonds and debentures, perpetual bonds, bank hybrid capital instruments, asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities, partial guarantees and other structured debt instruments. We have rated over 24,500 large and mid-scale corporates and financial institutions. CRISIL has also instituted several innovations in India in the rating business, including rating municipal bonds, partially guaranteed instruments and microfinance institutions. We also pioneered a globally unique rating service for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and significantly extended the accessibility to rating services to a wider market. Over 1,10,000 MSMEs have been rated by us.


CRISIL PRIVACY NOTICE

CRISIL respects your privacy. We use your contact information, such as your name, address, and email id, to fulfil your request and service your account and to provide you with additional information from CRISIL and other parts of S&P Global Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company) you may find of interest.

For further information, or to let us know your preferences with respect to receiving marketing materials, please visit https://www.crisil.com/en/home/privacy-and-cookie-notice.html. You can view the Company’s Customer Privacy at https://www.spglobal.com/corporate-privacy-policy

Last updated: April 2016


DISCLAIMER

This disclaimer forms part of and applies to each credit rating report and/or credit rating rationale that we provide (each a “Report”). For the avoidance of doubt, the term “Report” includes the information, ratings and other content forming part of the Report. The Report is intended for the jurisdiction of India only. This Report does not constitute an offer of services. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, nothing in the Report is to be construed as CRISIL providing or intending to provide any services in jurisdictions where CRISIL does not have the necessary licenses and/or registration to carry out its business activities referred to above. Access or use of this Report does not create a client relationship between CRISIL and the user.

We are not aware that any user intends to rely on the Report or of the manner in which a user intends to use the Report. In preparing our Report we have not taken into consideration the objectives or particular needs of any particular user. It is made abundantly clear that the Report is not intended to and does not constitute an investment advice. The Report is not an offer to sell or an offer to purchase or subscribe for any investment in any securities, instruments, facilities or solicitation of any kind or otherwise enter into any deal or transaction with the entity to which the Report pertains. The Report should not be the sole or primary basis for any investment decision within the meaning of any law or regulation (including the laws and regulations applicable in the US).

Ratings from CRISIL Rating are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities / instruments or to make any investment decisions. Any opinions expressed here are in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only current as of the stated date of their issue. CRISIL assumes no obligation to update its opinions following publication in any form or format although CRISIL may disseminate its opinions and analysis. CRISIL rating contained in the Report is not a substitute for the skill, judgment and experience of the user, its management, employees, advisors and/or clients when making investment or other business decisions. The recipients of the Report should rely on their own judgment and take their own professional advice before acting on the Report in any way.

Neither CRISIL nor its affiliates, third party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively, “CRISIL Parties”) guarantee the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the Report, and no CRISIL Party shall have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of any part of the Report. EACH CRISIL PARTY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE. In no event shall any CRISIL Party be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of any part of the Report even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

CRISIL Ratings may receive compensation for its ratings and certain credit-related analyses, normally from issuers or underwriters of the instruments, facilities, securities or from obligors. CRISIL’s public ratings and analysis as are required to be disclosed under the regulations of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (and other applicable regulations, if any) are made available on its web sites, www.crisil.com (free of charge). Reports with more detail and additional information may be available for subscription at a fee – more details about CRISIL ratings are available here: www.crisilratings.com.

CRISIL and its affiliates do not act as a fiduciary. While CRISIL has obtained information from sources it believes to be reliable, CRISIL does not perform an audit and undertakes no duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives and / or relies in its Reports. CRISIL keeps certain activities of its business units separate from each other in order to preserve the independence and objectivity of the respective activity. As a result, certain business units of CRISIL may have information that is not available to other CRISIL business units. CRISIL has established policies and procedures to maintain the confidentiality of certain non-public information received in connection with each analytical process. CRISIL has in place a ratings code of conduct and policies for analytical firewalls and for managing conflict of interest. For details please refer to: https://www.crisil.com/en/home/our-businesses/ratings/regulatory-disclosures/highlighted-policies.html

CRISIL’s rating criteria are generally available without charge to the public on the CRISIL public web site, www.crisil.com. For latest rating information on any instrument of any company rated by CRISIL you may contact CRISIL RATING DESK at CRISILratingdesk@crisil.com, or at (0091) 1800 267 1301.

This Report should not be reproduced or redistributed to any other person or in any form without a prior written consent of CRISIL.

All rights reserved @ CRISIL