01 — At a Glance
The Government-Owned Bank That Doesn’t Behave Like One
- 52-Week High / Low₹77.0 / ₹38.1
- Latest Qtr Revenue (Q3 FY26)₹7,344 Cr
- Latest Qtr PAT (Q3 FY26)₹1,779 Cr
- 9-Month PAT (Apr-Dec 2025)₹5,005 Cr
- Q3 EPS₹2.34
- Book Value (Per Share)₹43.4
- Price to Book1.61x
- Dividend Yield2.14%
- Debt / Equity10.5x
- Government Ownership73.6%
Auditor’s Opening Note: Bank of Maharashtra just reported the highest-ever quarterly net profit of ₹1,779 crore in Q3 FY26. Nine-month PAT stands at ₹5,005 crore against only 1.64% ROA and 5.72% ROCE — which should be impossible. A PSU bank with 23.8% ROE. Stock up 46.9% in a year. Trading at 8.32x P/E when the sector median is 8.25x. If this was a private bank, every analyst would have a target price. But it’s a government bank, so apparently everyone naps.
02 — Introduction
Meet the Boring Bank That’s Built Like a Rocket Ship
Bank of Maharashtra. Founded 1935. Ninety years old. Headquartered in Pune. Owns the word “regional” more than any bank in India. And for the last 18 months, it’s been one of the most wildly mispriced financial assets in the Indian equity market.
The numbers tell the story. Q3 delivered ₹1,779 crore net profit—a quarterly record. Nine-month PAT of ₹5,005 crore already exceeds most private bank’s full-year earnings. The government has sold 6% stake via OFS (completed Dec 2025) but retains 73.6%. Advances grew 20% YoY in a controlled manner. Deposits grew 15.3% YoY. The bank is literally tightening underwriting while growing faster than management guidance. That’s not typical PSU behavior.
Management’s tone has shifted from “let’s stabilize” to “we’re picking our spots.” They rejected expensive bulk deposits (down 7% YoY—first time ever). They imposed hard underwriting floors: no home loan below CIBIL 681. No MSME lending below CMR 5. They’re running the bank like a for-profit institution inside a government-owned structure. The return on equity is 22.81%, which puts them ahead of most private bank peers. ROA at 1.64% is frankly strange (more on this later). But the underlying business? Firing on all cylinders.
This is the story of a bank that nobody expected to be brilliant, which then turned brilliant, and which everyone continued ignoring. Until recently.
From the Concall (Jan 2026): “We will participate in opportunities only if risks are understood and if it is a profitable opportunity.” That’s the entire Bank of Maharashtra thesis in one sentence. No FOMO lending. Pure capital discipline.
03 — Business Model: What Does a 90-Year-Old Bank Actually Do?
Traditional Banking With A Twist Of Ruthless Capital Allocation.
Let’s break down Bank of Maharashtra like you’re explaining it to your broke cousin at a family wedding. The bank takes deposits from retail, MSME, corporate, and agricultural customers. It lends that money out at a spread. It keeps the difference. Repeat. That’s it. No blockchain. No fintech pivot. No “asset-light” nonsense. Pure vanilla banking.
What’s changed is the discipline. In FY24, the revenue breakup was: Retail Banking 39%, Corporate/Wholesale 36%, Treasury 21%, Other 4%. In FY22 it was: Retail 35%, Corporate 30%, Treasury 32%, Other 3%. The shift from Treasury-heavy to Retail-Corporate-balanced is intentional. The bank is pivoting from old-school money-trading to customer-relationship banking. That’s the move.
As of Dec 2025, the bank operates 2,719 branches (43% in Maharashtra, 57% outside). Total business stands at ₹5.95 lakh crore—₹3.22 lakh crore deposits, ₹2.73 lakh crore advances. The loan book is split: Corporate & Others 37.34%, Retail 30.50%, MSME 18.72%, Agriculture 13.44%. CASA deposits (current + savings) are at 49.54%, which means half the deposit base is sticky zero-cost money. The interest margin (NIM) stands at 3.88%, which they’ve guided to maintain at 3.75%.
Retail Book30.50%Growing 36% YoY
MSME Book18.72%Tight CIBIL Floors
Agri Book13.44%Gold-Backed Focus
CASA Ratio49.54%Sticky Deposits
The Gold Loan Strategy: Total gold loan portfolio (including co-lending) is ₹22,000 cr: Retail Gold ₹12,000 cr, Agri Gold ₹9,000 cr (enabled by new RBI rules), MSME Gold ₹1,000 cr. Branch-originated book is ₹16.5–17k cr; remainder via NBFC co-lending partnerships. The bank has ~9 co-lending partnerships with gold NBFCs, generating ₹5,500 cr of the portfolio. Economics are sweet: good pricing, zero safekeeping expense, zero insurance cost. Underwriting via digital LTV checks and strict business rules. This is scaling fast.
💬 Do you think gold-backed lending is a escape hatch for RBI yield curve controls, or a legitimate customer service for rural India? Drop your take.
04 — Financials Overview
Q3 FY26: The Numbers That Should Wake Everyone Up
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