Bajaj Finance plans to cut the share of new loans counted in its 3PL risk measure to 3.5%, aiming to limit default risk as the Indian lender expands.
Vice Chairman and Managing Director Rajeev Jain said on an Oct. 19 earnings call that the share had fallen to 7% from 14%. Those figures describe new originations, not loans already on Bajaj Finance’s books. Jain associated the measure with borrowers carrying multiple credit exposures, whom he said were more likely to default. The call did not define precisely which borrowing arrangements 3PL counts.
The target comes amid continued growth. Consolidated assets under management stood at ₹584,624 crore on Sept. 30, up 26% from a year earlier. Profit after tax before minority interest rose 29% to ₹6,367 crore in the September quarter. Management also projects 26%-27% growth in assets under management for fiscal 2027, as detailed in its 26%-27% AUM growth forecast.
Bajaj Finance reported ₹2,166 crore in loan losses and provisions for the quarter, compared with ₹2,080 crore a year earlier. The latest figure includes ₹337 crore in additional management and macroeconomic provisions. Without that addition, the company calculated a total of ₹1,829 crore, down 12% year over year.
The lender also reported a ₹1,601 crore quarterly rise in Stage 2 and Stage 3 assets. Of that increase, ₹1,047 crore came from Stage 2 gold loans linked to short-tenor schemes the company has stopped offering. Bajaj Finance said it did not expect the temporary movement in those gold loans to affect credit costs.
Stage 2 and Stage 3 assets together accounted for 2.02% of loans, versus 1.87% in the preceding quarter. Excluding the temporary gold-loan movement, the company put the ratio at 1.88%, compared with 1.90% a quarter earlier.
Jain said on an earlier company call that tighter 3PL screening had helped portfolio performance while reducing growth. The deadline for the new target was inconsistent on the Oct. 19 call: Rajeev Jain referred first to six months and later to March, while Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer Sandeep Jain said February. Rajeev Jain accepted that correction.
