Kotak Bank Flags Emerging Stress in Retail CV Loans — CEO Ashok Vaswani

Kotak Mahindra Bank has highlighted early stress signals in the retail commercial vehicle (CV) loan segment, citing pressure on repayments due to weak freight economics and higher financing costs. The bank is monitoring the portfolio closely to avoid slippage escalation. Financial Context Despite this pocket of stress, the bank’s overall asset quality remains within controlled bands, with healthy buffers and provisioning. Kotak continues to post stable credit growth in secured retail and corporate books, supported by strong capital adequacy. Future Outlook Management remains cautious on CV loans in the near term, but does not see this as a systemic risk. The bank is expected to maintain a prudent lending approach and focus on quality over volume until macro conditions stabilise. As interest rates ease and freight demand normalises, stress levels could gradually improve.