AU Small Finance Bank Q4FY26: Deposits up 22.8%

Provisional Q4FY26 update sets the tone

AU Small Finance Bank disclosed provisional business numbers for the quarter and year ended March 31, 2026, in a regulatory update dated April 4, 2026. The update, made under SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 and SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015, provides an early view of how the bank closed FY26 on key balance sheet metrics. The headline takeaway was strong year-on-year expansion in both deposits and advances, with sequential growth also remaining firm.

The bank clarified that the figures are provisional and subject to review and approval by the Audit Committee, the Board of Directors, and the statutory auditors. It also said the disclosure has been shared with the National Stock Exchange of India and BSE as part of ongoing compliance requirements.

Deposits rise to ₹1,52,660 crore in Q4FY26

Total deposits stood at ₹1,52,660 crore in Q4FY26, up 22.8% year-on-year from ₹1,24,269 crore in Q4FY25. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, deposits increased 10.3% from ₹1,38,415 crore in Q3FY26. The growth rate highlights continued traction in deposit mobilisation, an important metric for a small finance bank where liability franchise strength often determines funding stability.

CASA deposits came in at ₹43,360 crore, up 19.6% year-on-year from ₹36,253 crore. Sequentially, CASA grew 8.5% from ₹39,946 crore in Q3FY26. The CASA ratio was 28.4% in Q4FY26 versus 29.2% in Q4FY25 and 28.9% in Q3FY26, indicating a modest moderation compared with the year-ago quarter.

Advances expand faster than deposits

On the asset side, gross advances rose to ₹1,36,040 crore in Q4FY26. This represented year-on-year growth of 25.1% from ₹1,08,778 crore in Q4FY25. Quarter-on-quarter growth was 8.7% from ₹1,25,209 crore in Q3FY26.

The bank reported a securitised/assigned portfolio of ₹4,290 crore in Q4FY26 compared with ₹6,926 crore in Q4FY25 and ₹4,689 crore in Q3FY26. Adding this, the gross loan portfolio was ₹1,40,330 crore in Q4FY26, up 21.3% year-on-year from ₹1,15,704 crore and 8.0% sequentially from ₹1,29,898 crore.

Key Q4FY26 operating metrics at a glance

What the disclosure process signals

The bank’s April 4 filing is positioned as a provisional performance update rather than final financial results. That distinction matters because audited numbers and detailed profitability and asset-quality metrics typically come later with approvals from the Audit Committee, Board, and statutory auditors. Until then, the deposit and loan growth numbers offer directional information on balance-sheet scaling, but they do not by themselves confirm trends in margins, credit costs, or earnings.

CRISIL reaffirms ratings with stable outlooks

Separately, CRISIL Ratings reaffirmed AU Small Finance Bank’s credit ratings on April 2, 2026 across multiple instruments. It reaffirmed CRISIL AA+/Stable for fixed deposits of ₹40,000 crore, CRISIL A1+ for certificates of deposits of ₹1,100 crore, and CRISIL AA/Stable for Tier-II bonds of ₹500 crore. The reaffirmations signal continued confidence in the bank’s ability to service these obligations under a stable outlook framework.

Capitalisation, profitability, and asset-quality datapoints cited by CRISIL

CRISIL’s note referenced the bank’s capitalisation and operating performance as of December 31, 2025. It cited overall capital adequacy ratio (CAR) at 19.00% and networth at ₹19,085 crore. It also reported profit after tax of ₹1,809 crore for the nine months ended FY26 and return on assets (RoA) of 1.50%.

On asset quality, the agency cited gross NPA (GNPA) of 2.30% and net NPA (NNPA) of 0.90% as of December 31, 2025. In addition, it noted deposits of ₹1,38,415 crore as of December 31, 2025, consistent with the Q3FY26 deposit base referenced in the bank’s provisional business update.

Strategic context: universal bank transition and state government action

The broader context includes an in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India, received on August 7, 2025, for AU Small Finance Bank’s transition from a small finance bank to a universal bank, with an 18-month transition period. Another development mentioned in CRISIL’s coverage was the Haryana state government’s decision on February 18, 2026 to de-empanel the bank for government business, with management stating there were no major deposit outflows following that decision.

Market snapshot: recent stock return history

The provided stock return data showed AU Small Finance Bank up 0.68% over one day, 2.87% over five days, and 11.89% over one month. Over longer windows, the stock was up 24.06% over six months, 70.10% over one year, and 83.94% over five years. These figures reflect historical performance and do not, by themselves, explain the drivers of Q4FY26 balance-sheet growth.

Why this update matters for investors tracking FY26 close

The Q4FY26 provisional numbers point to strong balance-sheet expansion, with advances growing faster than deposits on a year-on-year basis. At the same time, the CASA ratio at 28.4% indicates that low-cost deposits remain a key variable to monitor as the bank scales.

Alongside these figures, CRISIL’s rating reaffirmations and the referenced capital and asset-quality metrics provide additional context on funding confidence and balance-sheet resilience. The next formal milestone is the bank’s final audited results for Q4FY26, which will follow completion of internal governance and statutory audit processes.