ICICI Bank faced similar crisis during 2015 to 2017 period

 ICICI Bank faced several controversies and adverse news reports between 2015 and 2017. Here are some of the biggest issues:

1. Videocon Loan Controversy (2016-2018)

• One of the most significant scandals that surfaced was related to a conflict of interest in loans extended to the Videocon Group.
• It was alleged that ICICI Bank, under then-CEO Chanda Kochhar, sanctioned ₹3,250 crore in loans to Videocon Group.
• Later, a company linked to her husband, Deepak Kochhar’s NuPower Renewables, received investments from Videocon’s chairman Venugopal Dhoot.
• This raised allegations of quid pro quo, misuse of power, and lack of transparency.
• Eventually, this controversy led to Chanda Kochhar stepping down in 2018.

2. Allegations of Evergreening of Loans

• There were reports that ICICI Bank was involved in evergreening loans, where bad loans were refinanced or rolled over to avoid recognizing them as non-performing assets (NPAs).
• The bank faced scrutiny regarding its lending practices and provisioning for bad loans.

3. Increase in Non-Performing Assets (NPAs)

• ICICI Bank saw a sharp rise in bad loans during this period.
• Gross NPAs rose significantly, leading to concerns about its asset quality.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) also directed stricter asset quality reviews, which further revealed stress in ICICI Bank’s loan book.

4. Whistleblower Complaints and Governance Issues

• Several whistleblower complaints emerged regarding corporate governance lapses in the bank.
• The role of top management, especially Chanda Kochhar, was questioned in various loan deals.

5. Regulatory Scrutiny

• Due to the multiple allegations, regulatory bodies like SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India), RBI, and CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) started investigating the bank’s dealings.
• There were concerns about lack of due diligence in approving large corporate loans.

Though some of these issues officially unraveled in later years (2018-2019), the seeds of controversy were sown in the 2015-2017 period, leading to significant reputation damage for ICICI Bank.

In terms of size In Financial Year (FY) 2015, ICICI Bank had the following key statistics:

1. Loan Book Size (Total Advances)
   • As of March 31, 2015, ICICI Bank’s total advances (loan book size) stood at ₹387,522 crore (₹3.88 lakh crore).
2. Number of Branches
   • ICICI Bank had 4,050 branches across India in FY 2015.

These numbers indicate ICICI Bank’s strong presence and large-scale lending operations at that time. Let me know if you need more details!

In comparison fy 25 loan book size of Indusind bank will be 4 lac crores and over 3100 bank branches and over 6000 branches including BFIL.

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