A man walks outside a branch of IndusInd Bank in New Delhi, India.
Credit: Reuters Photo
New Delhi: Amid allegations of insider trading and accounting discrepancies in IndusInd Bank, capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Thursday said it is investigating the case for any “egregious violations”.
“It is the RBI’s remit so far as banks are concerned. But if there are any egregious violations by anyone in its capacity, SEBI is looking into that,” SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said.
He said while the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is investigating the issue from the perspective of accounting discrepancies, the SEBI’s investigation would be focused on the issues related to stock market manipulations.
“Wherever SEBI has to do in relation to whatever SEBI’s remit is, SEBI is doing,” Pandey told reporters on the sidelines of an event organised by Assocham.
The SEBI chief’s comment comes a day after the private sector lender reported its highest-ever quarterly loss of Rs 2,329 crore for the three month period ended March 2025. In the first three quarters of FY25, the company had posted a net profit of Rs 6,628 crore.
IndusInd Bank’s share price has slumped and several of its officials have come under regulatory scanner after the bank revealed on March 10, 2025 that it had identified discrepancies in the accounting of derivative transactions conducted over the past 5-7 years for hedging its foreign currency borrowings.
The bank has also admitted to significant discrepancies in its derivative portfolio, resulting in an estimated adverse impact of 2.35% on its net worth.
In its quarterly results on Wednesday, IndusInd Bank also disclosed that Rs 172 crore was wrongly recorded as fee income in the bank’s microfinance division in the first three quarters of 2024-25. The lender corrected this error in the fourth quarter that led to widening in the loss.
In a post-earnings conference call, the bank's Chairman Sunil Mehta said the Board along with the management has shown a strong resolve to address all the identified issues. “The learnings from these incidents will be imbibed to reinforce the governance and compliance culture of the organization,” Mehta said.
Meanwhile, Ashok P Hinduja, chairman, IndusInd International Holdings Limited (IIHL), which is the promoter of IndusInd Bank, on Thursday said the bank’s promoters are committed to infuse liquidity into the lender if the need arises.
"Though the capital adequacy of the Bank is quite healthy, for business growth, should any further equity be required, IIHL, as the promoter of IBL, remains committed to supporting the Bank, as it has done over the past 30 years,” Hinduja said in a statement.