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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of TH either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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The bank’s total deposits stood at Rs 1.52 lakh crore as of March 31, 2026, registering a 22.8% year-on-year growth and a 10.3% increase sequentially from Rs 1.38 lakh crore as of December 31, 2025. CASA deposits came in at Rs 43,360 crore, up 19.6% year-on-year and 8.5% quarter-on-quarter. However, the CASA ratio stood at 28.4%, compared to 29.2% a year ago and 28.9% in the previous quarter.

On the advances front, gross advances stood at Rs 1.36 lakh crore, reflecting a 25.1% year-on-year growth and an 8.7% rise sequentially from Rs 1.26 lakh crore. The bank’s securitised and assigned portfolio was reported at Rs 4,290 crore, compared to Rs 6,926 crore in the year-ago period and Rs 4,689 crore in the previous quarter.

Overall, the gross loan portfolio (A+B) stood at Rs 1.40 lakh crore as of March 31, 2026, marking a 21.3% year-on-year growth and an 8% increase quarter-on-quarter from Rs 1.30 lakh crore.

Banking stocks have come under sharp pressure over the past three months, with most lenders underperforming the benchmark Nifty 50 amid a challenging macro backdrop marked by sustained foreign institutional investor (FII) outflows, escalating geopolitical tensions and a surge in energy prices. AU Small Finance Bank shares have declined 13% since the beginning of the year.

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The underperformance comes amid persistent FII selling, which has disproportionately impacted financials due to their heavy weightage in benchmark indices. At the same time, the escalation of the Iran-Israel conflict has triggered a spike in crude oil prices, raising concerns over inflation and delaying expectations of interest rate cuts by global central banks.
In a separate development in February, the Haryana government de-empanelled the lender from government business after suspected fraudulent activities were disclosed.The company issued a clarification late Sunday, stating it initiated an internal review regarding two accounts in question. The bank further said that both these accounts were “duly opened after completion of all applicable KYC checks and requisite authorisations” and were in accordance with the bank’s internal policies and processes.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Centenary House in Morecambe has been largely empty since 1990s

New calls have been made to regenerate a landmark Morecambe building, as a big shake-up of councils looms in 2028 with uncertainty about future support.

Centenary House, on Morecambe’s Regent Street, has been largely vacant since the mid-1990s except for a ground-floor Co-op shop. Some repairs were done in 2024 using government cash. Earlier in 2019, a plan was approved for offices, a café, work and event spaces but it did not progress.

Council talks have been held recently with an affordable homes organisation about it. But a lack of nearby car parking, and possibly other things, could be turning-off some developers, councillors were told at Lancaster City Council’s latest full meeting.

Labour’s David Whittaker asked Morecambe Bay Independent Martin Bottoms, a cabinet member, about the situation.

Coun Whittaker said: “Has there been any recent engagement with external funding sources to help Centenary House? What do you see as a realistic outcome for the future of the building? Car parking is another consideration. I know this is a long-term question but a lot of people are asking about it.”

Coun Bottoms, who has a remit for Morecambe regeneration and its local economy, said: “Brownfield regeneration money is available for developers to move this forward. Centenary House is bordered by roads and there is little car parking space. Whether it has community or commercial uses, there are going to be some parking issues.

“We are in talks with an affordable housing developer but they are aware that car parking needs have to be considered.”

Then Coun Whittaker added: “Will things progress before local government reorganisation?”

Coun Bottoms said: “It’s something we have all had concerns about since the council’s new administration was formed. We need to find a solution. It’s down to us to get it done. Or, at least, get it started before local government reorganisation. I will be pressing for that.”

The Lancaster City Council district including Morecambe could be merged with Preston and the Ribble Valley under the government’s push to reorganise all Lancashire councils in 2028. The government wants to end the two-tier system of district and county councils created in 1974.

New bigger unitary councils, with access to major funds and government contacts, will likely cover bigger areas and include a wider intake of councillors. So how projects like Centenary House will be viewed by future councillors is unknown.

To find all the planning applications, traffic diversions, road layout changes, alcohol licence applications and more in your community, visit the Public Notices Portal.

Amazon is dusting itself off for another tilt at Britain’s fiercely competitive grocery sector, this time by converting its abandoned Fresh convenience stores into outlets for Whole Foods Market, the organic chain it acquired for $13.7 billion in 2017.

The move comes barely six months after the US tech giant shuttered 19 of its much-hyped “grab and go” Fresh stores across the country. Launched in 2021 with bold talk of hundreds of locations and a revolution in convenience shopping, the till-free format simply failed to resonate with British consumers. By September last year, the experiment was over.

Now Amazon is hoping Whole Foods can succeed where Fresh could not. The brand, which currently operates seven shops in London, intends to open five additional sites by the end of June. Four of these will occupy former Fresh premises, including a new store in Angel, Islington, which opened this week, alongside planned locations at Wood Wharf in Canary Wharf, Gracechurch Street in the City, Liverpool Street and Notting Hill Gate. A further opening is earmarked for St James’s.

Jade Hoai, executive leader of purchasing at Whole Foods Market UK, said the London expansion reflected confidence in the brand’s offer, particularly in neighbourhoods where customers shop frequently and seek high-quality food as part of their daily routine.

Yet the pivot inevitably raises the question of whether Amazon is merely replacing one struggling format with another. Whole Foods has endured a bruising time on this side of the Atlantic since entering the British market in 2004. Turnover at its UK arm fell seven per cent to £86.4 million in the year to December 2024, while pre-tax losses hit £20 million. Cumulative losses have now surpassed £200 million. The company closed two underperforming stores and its Dartford distribution centre in early 2024 and cut its average headcount from 798 to 608.

High operating costs and stiff competition from established players have consistently undermined the chain’s efforts, and its premium pricing has proved a hard sell in a market dominated by the discounters Aldi and Lidl at one end and well-entrenched giants such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s at the other.

The picture is markedly different in the United States, where Whole Foods has enjoyed steady growth under Amazon’s stewardship. The American operation has expanded its market share by aggressively cutting prices and rolling out smaller-format stores, successfully shedding the nickname “Whole Paycheque”, a longstanding joke that a single bag of groceries there could swallow an entire salary.

Whether that formula can translate to the UK remains to be seen. Hoai pointed to what she described as a clear shift in consumer behaviour, with growing demand for quality, transparency and a more considered retail experience.

The new Angel store, spanning 3,600 square feet, features a hot food counter, self-serve coffee and an Amazon kiosk. Delivery through Deliveroo is expected to follow shortly.

For Amazon, the stakes extend beyond groceries. The company has long viewed physical retail as a gateway to embedding itself more deeply in consumers’ daily lives and driving subscriptions to its Prime service. But its track record in British bricks-and-mortar retailing offers little cause for confidence, and the decision to pour further investment into a brand that has bled more than £200 million in losses will test the patience even of a company with pockets as deep as Amazon’s.

Amy Ingham

Amy is a newly qualified journalist specialising in business journalism at Business Matters with responsibility for news content for what is now the UK’s largest print and online source of current business news.

The majority of Britain’s ultra-wealthy individuals are actively weighing up whether to leave the country, driven not so much by the level of taxation but by what they see as a government incapable of providing a stable fiscal framework.

A survey of 200 multi-millionaires, each with a personal fortune of at least £50m, carried out by accountancy firm BDO, found that two-thirds had considered relocating over the past twelve months. The most striking finding, however, was the reason: 42 per cent pointed to inconsistent tax policies as the principal factor behind their deliberations, while just 18 per cent cited high tax rates alone.

The distinction matters. Britain has long taxed at rates comparable to or above those of its European neighbours, yet the ultra-rich have historically stayed put. What appears to have shifted the calculus is a succession of policy reversals and threatened reforms under Labour, particularly around inheritance tax and capital gains tax, that have left wealthy individuals unable to plan with any confidence.

Elsa Littlewood, a tax partner at BDO, said that many of those considering departure would prefer to remain but feel unable to manage long-term wealth planning against such an unpredictable backdrop.

Since Labour took office, a string of high-profile departures has underlined the trend. Hedge fund manager Michael Platt relocated his family office to Dubai. Norwegian-born shipping magnate John Fredriksen put his £250m Chelsea townhouse on the market. Richard Gnodde, formerly Goldman Sachs’s most senior banker in Europe, moved to Milan, whilst brothers Ian and Richard Livingstone shifted their primary residence to Monaco. Indian billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, a British resident for nearly three decades, also moved to Dubai, as did Egyptian businessman Nassef Sawiris.

The exodus began in earnest when Rachel Reeves, upon becoming Chancellor, abolished the non-domicile status, a long-standing tax regime that had made Britain attractive to internationally mobile wealth. A proposed 40 per cent inheritance tax on worldwide assets provoked such fierce opposition that it was subsequently scaled back, but by then confidence had already been dented.

Ms Reeves’s second Budget in November compounded the uncertainty. Having signalled possible increases to capital gains tax, she ultimately left CGT largely untouched but raised rates on savings and dividends and introduced what critics dubbed a “mansion tax” on higher-value properties, a set of measures that few had anticipated.

Maxwell Marlow, a director at the Adam Smith Institute, warned that the absence of any replacement scheme to attract wealthy investors’ capital and spending to Britain meant the broader population would bear the cost.

For Business Matters readers running or advising businesses that depend on access to high-net-worth capital, the message from BDO’s research is clear: it is not the size of the tax bill that is driving people away, but the inability to know what that bill will look like next year. Certainty, it seems, has become the scarcest commodity in British fiscal policy.

Amy Ingham

Amy is a newly qualified journalist specialising in business journalism at Business Matters with responsibility for news content for what is now the UK’s largest print and online source of current business news.