Fino Payments Bank Ltd — Q4 FY26 earnings call
Summary generated by AI from the official transcript Fino Payments Bank Ltd filed with BSE on 04 May 2026. Every statement cites a verbatim quote from that document — open any citation to read it. This is a record of what management said, not a recommendation. How we check these summaries
The short read
Fino Payments Bank reported Q4 FY26 revenue down 31% year-on-year and full-year revenue down 14%, which management attributed to regulatory-driven declines in digital payments and bank-led DMT remittances rather than customer attrition. The bank recorded record quarterly renewal income of Rs 62.2 crore, added 3.2 lakh new CASA accounts in March alone, and reached total deposits of Rs 2,957 crore, while completing its core banking migration to Finacle. Management discussed the bank's progress toward converting to a Small Finance Bank following RBI's in-principle approval, along with an unspecified event during Q4 that led to interim CEO leadership arrangements approved by the RBI.
Numbers mentioned
Total revenue: down 31% year-on-year (Q4 FY26)
p. 6
“The total revenue for the quarter dropped by 31% year-on-year and full year by 14%.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Customer base: 1.75 crores (as of March 2026)
p. 4
“Our customer base stood at 1.75 crores by the end of March'26, growing 22% on a year-on-year basis.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
New CASA accounts: 6.9 lakh (Q4 FY26)
p. 4
“We've added approximately 6.9 lakh new CASA accounts in Quarter 4'26 alone.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
New accounts in March: 3.2 lakh (March 2026)
p. 4
“in the month of March'26, we opened 3.2 lakh new accounts. Yes, this is 3.2 lakh new accounts, highest in last 3 years.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Total deposit balance: ₹2,957 crores (post-event, FY26)
p. 4
“Our total deposit balance increased all-time high of ₹2,957 crores post event and the sustaining of that has been consistent across after achieving the highest possible peak.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Renewal income: ₹62.2 crores (Q4 FY26)
p. 4
“Our renewal income in Quarter 4'26 reached ₹62.2 crores, the highest single quarter renewal in the bank's history.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Renewal income growth: more than 25% year-on-year (FY26)
p. 4
“For the full year, renewal income grew by more than 25% year-on-year.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Full year renewal income: ₹237 crores (FY26)
p. 6
“Full year renewal income grew 25% to ₹237 crores from ₹190 crores in FY'25.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
B2B digital payments throughput: down approximately 17% sequentially (Q4 FY26)
p. 4
“Throughput from B2B digital payments were down approximately 17% sequentially in Quarter 4'26.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Core banking migration investment: around ₹200 crores
p. 5
“This was an investment of around ₹200 crores for the bank and one of the most consequential technology projects we have undertaken, and it has gone live within our anticipated time line.”
Ketan Merchant, page 5 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Referral business disbursals: approximately ₹1,300 crores, with Q4 at ₹592 crores (FY26 / Q4 FY26)
p. 5
“FY'26 referral business stood at approximately ₹1,300 crores with Q4 alone contributing around ₹592 crores, a 97% sequential increase.”
Ketan Merchant, page 5 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Margin expansion: 250 bps quarter-on-quarter, 500 bps full year (Q4 FY26 / FY26)
p. 6
“Our margins expanded by 250 bps for quarter-on-quarter and 500 bps on a full year basis.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Cost of funds: below 2% (current)
p. 6
“Our cost of funds remained structurally low below 2% on the core CASA book, entering our SFB phase with approximately ₹2,800 crores of low-cost liabilities, it gives us a cost of funds advantage of approximately 300 basis points relative to our typical Small Finance Bank.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Digital revenue: decline from ₹63 crores to ₹41 crores (Q3 FY26 to Q4 FY26)
p. 6
“The revenue decline from ₹63 crores in Q3 to ₹41 crores in Q4 reflects a deliberate derisking of high-margin program manager flows in response to the regulatory environment, not a loss of platform capacity.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Active client base (digital): decline from 347 to 229 (December 2025 to March 2026)
p. 6
“reflecting in our active client base declining from 347 in December'25 to 229 in March'26.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Operating expenses growth: 9% year-on-year (FY26)
p. 6
“FY'26 operating expenses, including depreciation, grew only by 9% year-on-year, absorbing the Finacle migration investment, which is a proof of concept for the lending franchise we will eventually own as an SFB.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Capital adequacy ratio: 83% (current)
p. 8
“as we currently speak, our capital adequacy ratio is 83%, if Anup can validate that for me, vis-a-vis a 15% regulatory requirement.”
Ketan Merchant, page 8 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Business correspondence revenue: around ₹140-odd crores (FY26)
p. 8
“that business approximately has a revenue number of around ₹140-odd crores in FY'26.”
Ketan Merchant, page 8 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Depreciation: ₹23 crores (Q4 FY26)
p. 14
“Sorry, the depreciation for this quarter? ₹23 crores.”
Anup Agarwal, page 14 of the filed PDF · View the filing
EBITDA impact: around ₹6 crores, ₹7 crores (Q4 FY26)
p. 14
“EBITDA has largely been impacted only by around ₹6 crores, ₹7 crores.”
Ketan Merchant, page 14 of the filed PDF · View the filing
CASA revenue: ₹629 crores / ₹630 crores (FY26)
p. 16
“out of the ₹630 crores of the CASA revenue, we have ₹136 crores of float revenue in this.”
Anup Agarwal, page 16 of the filed PDF · View the filing
CASA renewal rate: 60% to 65% (current)
p. 16
“we are maintaining the renewal run rate of around 60% to 65% for the CASA subscription renewal.”
Anup Agarwal, page 16 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Lending referral commission: around 100 basis points (current)
p. 11
“we around make 100 basis points on the lending referral business, which we are currently doing.”
Ketan Merchant, page 11 of the filed PDF · View the filing
What management said it would do
A record of statements made on the call, in the words management used. Parakho does not forecast, endorse or assess them, and their presence here is not a view on whether they will happen.
ROE — 20% · FY30
stated as an aspiration by Anup Agarwal
p. 17
“the ROE of 20% is what we aim to achieve by FY'30.”
Anup Agarwal, page 17 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Cost of funds — around 3.9% · FY30
stated as an aspiration by Ketan Merchant
p. 15
“one of the key aspects which we are essentially looking at is the cost of funds in FY'30 and around 3.9% based on current.”
Ketan Merchant, page 15 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Overall capex — ₹100 crores
stated firmly by Ketan Merchant
p. 17
“if we are looking at ₹100 crore, that is the overall capex at this stage, which we are looking at, including that, but the branches from a business model perspective may not be material is what I'm saying.”
Ketan Merchant, page 17 of the filed PDF · View the filing
CASA and retail account opening momentum — FY27
stated firmly by Ketan Merchant
p. 9
“our focus is fully on retail and CASA as we had seen across in the month of March as well. So that momentum is expected to continue in FY'27 in the manner which Anup just explained.”
Ketan Merchant, page 9 of the filed PDF · View the filing
NIM — around 8% to 10%
stated as an aspiration by Ketan Merchant
p. 16
“NIM, we have been putting it across because of our low-cost deposit base, which we have is anywhere in the range of around 8% to 10% is what we are looking at.”
Ketan Merchant, page 16 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Digital payment business plan — end of the quarter
stated conditionally by Ketan Merchant
p. 10
“we'll just keep an updated on the entire business model in later part of the quarter or towards the end of the quarter.”
Ketan Merchant, page 10 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Secured lending portfolio mix — 90% secured
stated as an aspiration by Ketan Merchant
p. 16
“we have listed down products, which we are looking at largely secured, 90% secured portfolio, which we are looking at affordable housing, MSME, gold loans, LAP, micro LAP and a bit of personal loans.”
Ketan Merchant, page 16 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Liability sourcing from merchant model — around 2/3 or more
stated as an aspiration by Ketan Merchant
p. 15
“around 2/3 or more business is expected to come on the liability side from our merchant model, which is our current existing model.”
Ketan Merchant, page 15 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Q&A highlights
Management's answers to analyst questions, in Parakho's words rather than a transcript. Each row names who answered and carries the verbatim quote it was drawn from.
Management said the referral business is not co-lending and is being used to build the lending model ahead of SFB conversion; cash management services will continue but business correspondence, which generated ~₹140 crore in FY26, will not continue as an SFB.
Answered by Ketan Merchant
Asked by Ankit Kanodia: Will the co-lending/referral and existing businesses like cash management and business correspondence create conflicts of interest once Fino becomes an SFB?
p. 8
“That is a business which we are not allowed to do in Small Finance Bank, and we've made our business model after factoring that.”
Ketan Merchant, page 8 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management said the current capital adequacy ratio is well above regulatory requirements and the business plan through FY30 does not require additional capital for the SFB launch.
Answered by Ketan Merchant
Asked by Ankit Kanodia: Is a capital raise planned for the SFB transition?
p. 8
“So our SFB launch is not dependent on any capital based on the business plan which we have drawn across.”
Ketan Merchant, page 8 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management attributed the dip to a core banking system migration disruption in January and a deliberate shift toward higher-quality, higher-balance customers.
Answered by Anup Agarwal
Asked by Anand Dama: What explains the drop in CASA account openings in Q4?
p. 9
“during the Q4, we had initially in the first month, in January, we had a core banking system migration. So for around 4 to 5 days, there was a disruption in terms of the technology switchover.”
Anup Agarwal, page 9 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management said real money gaming merchants were blocked in August 2025 per government regulation, and the Q4 cleanup targeted merchants under the program manager business.
Answered by Shailesh Pandey
Asked by Anand Dama: Were digital payment customer cleanups related to real money gaming or other issues?
p. 9
“the real money game was actually stopped in August 2025 as per the regulation issued by the Government of India.”
Shailesh Pandey, page 9 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management clarified Soundbox figures are absolute counts of a subset of the 20 lakh total merchant network and said Soundbox is not intended as a revenue-generating strategy but a data-capture tool for SFB preparation.
Answered by Ketan Merchant
Asked by Siddharth Gupta: What is the difference between the Soundbox merchant count and total merchant network, and is Soundbox a revenue strategy?
p. 12
“Soundbox strategy is not a revenue-accretive strategy. This is to something the way I explained the lending referrals where we are building our guardrail so that it essentially can -- we can leverage all of this at the time of Small Finance Bank's launch.”
Ketan Merchant, page 12 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management said the depreciation increase is due to core banking system capitalization completed in Q4, and the interest cost increase relates to reverse repo participation.
Answered by Anup Agarwal
Asked by Ashish Kumar: What is driving the jump in depreciation and interest costs?
p. 14
“depreciation is completely primarily the impact on account of the core banking system migration completion and capitalization of the same in Q4.”
Anup Agarwal, page 14 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management said the SFB timeline remains intact and preparation has intensified, with major technology upgrades already completed and remaining milestones tied to RBI's process after in-principle approval.
Answered by Ketan Merchant
Asked by Shazad Shroff: Will the recent management disruption impact the 2028 SFB launch timeline, and what regulatory milestones remain?
p. 15
“the SFB functioning or SFB preparation, if at all, has further intensified for FY'27 and the time lines currently as we see are completely intact.”
Ketan Merchant, page 15 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Management confirmed the 20% ROE target is aimed for by FY30 and said they are working to operationalize the SFB at the earliest while maintaining cost discipline.
Answered by Anup Agarwal
Asked by Nitin: Is the 20% ROE target for FY30 or earlier, and how soon can profitability recover?
p. 17
“the ROE of 20% is what we aim to achieve by FY'30.”
Anup Agarwal, page 17 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Risks flagged
Regulatory-driven contraction in digital payments and industry-wide collapse of bank-led DMT remittances following an RBI circular
p. 6
“The regulatory-driven contradiction in digital payments from Q2 onwards, the industry-wide collapse of bank-led DMT remittances following the November'24 RBI circular has caused the decline.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Slowdown in NBFC and MFI sector affecting B2B business revenue
p. 6
“on our B2B business, because of the slumber in the NBFC & MFI sector, the revenues have declined for the quarter and for the year.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Industry-wide rise of mule accounts and heightened regulatory scrutiny
p. 3
“Through FY'26, the broader ecosystem witnessed heightened regulatory scrutiny, industry-wide efforts to tackle digital fraud, the rise of mule accounts in banking system and a tightening of operating environment.”
Ketan Merchant, page 3 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Unprecedented event in Q4 FY26 requiring interim leadership arrangements approved by RBI
p. 4
“The Board swiftly convened within 24 hours to ensure continuity through interim leadership arrangements approved by the Reserve Bank of India.”
Ketan Merchant, page 4 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Pausing of UPI P2M digital payment business pending review
p. 13
“we have decided to pause the UPI P2M business, which means the existing merchants will not be able to transact as well as we'll not be onboarding any new partner as well as merchant.”
Shailesh Pandey, page 13 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Uncertainty over fit and proper status review related to unavailability of a senior executive
p. 11
“the bank and the Board is evaluating the guidance and the prescription which the Reserve Bank of India has given.”
Ketan Merchant, page 11 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Decline in active digital client base due to deliberate de-risking
p. 6
“reflecting in our active client base declining from 347 in December'25 to 229 in March'26.”
Anup Agarwal, page 6 of the filed PDF · View the filing
Generated by claude-sonnet-5. Source: the transcript as filed with BSE. We link to the exchange's copy; we do not host transcripts. Parakho is a data and screening tool, not an investment adviser — nothing here is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold.