Bank of India vs PNB (2026): NIM, ROA, Growth, NPAs & Which Is Better?

Bank of India vs PNB: Q1 FY2027 scoreboard

The strangest part of the comparison: margins are effectively identical

Bank of India's global NIM is 2.52%.

PNB's is 2.50%.

A two-basis-point difference is economically negligible compared with differences in credit growth, provisioning and operating expenses.

This gives investors an unusually controlled experiment.

The two banks generate almost the same spread from the balance sheet.

What happens after that spread is where the strategies separate.

CASA cannot explain the difference either

Bank of India CASA:

36.68%.

PNB:

36.7%.

They are practically identical.

So neither bank has a major advantage from the proportion of deposits sitting in current and savings accounts.

This pushes the analysis further down the income statement.

Bank of India's growth is broad rather than dependent on one book

RAM advances grew approximately 19.75%.

Retail grew around 20.60%.

MSME increased 19.34%.

Agriculture increased 18.92%.

Corporate credit grew around 18.44%.

The similarity across those growth rates is striking.

This is broad balance-sheet acceleration, not one hot product distorting the bank-wide number.

Broad growth reduces concentration risk but not vintage risk

A portfolio can be diversified and still be badly underwritten.

The true test of BOI's FY27 growth will arrive after newer loans season.

Investors should therefore watch:

• SMA-1 and SMA-2.
• Retail delinquency.
• MSME slippage.
• Corporate concentration.
• Credit cost.

rather than assuming today's NPA ratios describe tomorrow's loan book.

Even gradual deployment could move the earnings needle

Suppose PNB moves its CD ratio upward over several years while maintaining:

• mid-teens granular credit growth.
• stable CASA.
• credit cost below 0.5%.
• sub-1% slippage.

The bank could produce faster NII growth without requiring an aggressive liability race.

This is the central PNB rerating opportunity.

The problem is that PNB has not yet converted that opportunity into NII growth

Q1 NII increased only approximately 2.1%.

Bank of India increased NII 12.61%.

This is a much more useful recurring comparison than the headline PAT growth percentages.

PNB has already made enormous progress repairing credit costs and NPAs.

The next rerating needs revenue.

PNB's 214% PAT growth is mathematically correct but economically misleading

The prior-year quarter carried an unusually large tax charge following the bank's transition to the new tax regime.

This makes the year-on-year comparison extraordinarily easy.

The current ₹5,253 crore profit is real.

The 213.6% growth rate is not a sustainable operating-growth rate.

Operating profit increased roughly 6.2%.

NII increased 2.1%.

Those numbers are the better guide to the current recurring engine.

Bank of India's 36% PAT growth has a stronger operating bridge

NII increased 12.61%.

Operating profit increased 25.99%.

PAT increased 36.23%.

Bank of India therefore generated increasing growth as the income statement moved from NII toward the bottom line.

This was supported by operating efficiency, non-interest income, recoveries and low provisions.

Bank of India's operating efficiency is materially better

Cost-to-income:

46.33%.

PNB is around:

50.31%.

A four-percentage-point difference matters at this scale.

BOI retains more of each rupee of operating income before credit provisions and taxes.

PNB's network is both an advantage and an expense base

PNB operates one of India's largest physical banking franchises.

That helps generate:

• Deposits.
• Government business.
• Agriculture relationships.
• MSME lending.
• Retail distribution.

It also creates a large fixed-cost base.

Digital migration therefore matters greatly for PNB's cost-to-income trajectory.

Asset quality gives each bank a different victory

Bank of India has the lower gross NPA.

1.81% versus PNB at 2.78%.

PNB has the lower net NPA.

0.28% versus Bank of India at 0.51%.

The difference is provision coverage.

PNB has provisioned extremely aggressively

Provision coverage including technical write-offs is around 97.23%.

Bank of India is approximately 93.83%.

PNB therefore has more gross recognised stress but less residual unprovided exposure.

This is why net NPA is substantially lower despite the weaker GNPA ratio.

Bank of India has the better current stress-flow indicators

Slippage ratio is approximately 0.24%.

PNB is around 0.68%.

Credit cost:

Bank of India 0.15%.

PNB approximately 0.25%.

This gives BOI the current advantage on fresh stress formation and provisioning burden.

A 0.15% credit cost is exceptionally low

Investors should not assume it remains permanently at that level.

Historical banking cycles show credit costs can rise sharply when economic conditions weaken or fast-growing loan vintages season.

Bank of India's current number is therefore both a quality signal and a potential normalisation risk.

PNB's credit cost is also historically low

Approximately 0.25% is not a problematic level.

Both banks operate in a benign credit environment compared with the old PSU-bank NPA cycle.

This means future profit growth will increasingly depend on revenue and efficiency rather than another dramatic fall in provisions.

ROA is almost the same despite BOI's much higher deployment

Bank of India:

1.01%.

PNB:

1.04%.

This result is more interesting than it first appears.

BOI deploys far more of its deposit base into loans, has better operating efficiency, lower credit cost and faster growth.

Yet final ROA is not higher.

Why?

ROA reflects the entire balance sheet and income statement, not only customer loans.

Differences in:

• asset mix.
• treasury income.
• fees.
• recoveries.
• taxes.
• capital structure.

can offset advantages elsewhere.

The near-identical ROA therefore tells investors neither bank has yet established an overwhelming profit-density advantage.

ROE gives PNB a somewhat clearer lead

PNB reported approximately 17.33%.

Bank of India was around 16.12%.

The difference is modest rather than dramatic.

Both are producing healthy returns on equity at current quarterly run rates.

Bank of India has stronger common-equity capital

CET1 is around 15.97%.

PNB is around 13.98%.

Total capital adequacy is:

Bank of India 18.69%.

PNB 18.13%.

BOI therefore combines rapid current growth with a strong regulatory-capital cushion.

That matters because 18.6% credit growth consumes capital

Even perfectly performing loans expand risk-weighted assets.

A fast-growing bank needs enough retained earnings and CET1 to support that expansion.

Bank of India's current capital position provides comfort, but the ratio should be monitored if high-teens growth persists.

Why might the market still discount Bank of India more deeply?

Possible reasons include:

• smaller franchise scale than PNB.
• lower absolute earnings.
• uncertainty over sustainability of very low credit cost.
• rapid credit growth creating future vintage risk.
• historically weaker consistency across cycles.

The current quarter argues that several of these concerns are improving.

PNB's valuation contains more optionality than current NII suggests

PNB is still below book despite:

• 17%+ quarterly annualised ROE.
• 0.28% NNPA.
• 97% provision coverage.
• 18% capital adequacy.
• huge deposit headroom.

The market appears to be demanding stronger evidence that these balance-sheet strengths can generate higher recurring revenue.

Bank of India's rerating test is different

BOI already has the revenue growth.

It now has to prove the growth remains clean.

The most important confirmation metrics are:

• GNPA remains below 2%.
• credit cost remains controlled after normalisation.
• ROA stays above 1%.
• NIM stabilises or improves from 2.52%.
• capital remains comfortably above requirements.

PNB's rerating test is primarily about monetisation

PNB needs:

• faster NII growth.
• NIM moving toward management guidance.
• productive use of deposit headroom.
• stable sub-1% slippage.
• ROA moving sustainably above 1.1%.

It does not need another dramatic NPA-repair cycle.

Most of that repair has already happened.

The Bull Run snapshot shows PNB currently has stronger short-term momentum

The one-year picture tells a different story

Bank of India's Bull Run snapshot showed approximately 25% one-year return.

PNB was around 10%.

This does not determine future performance.

It shows BOI's fundamental repair has already received some market recognition even though the stock continues trading below book.

Bank of India vs PNB FAQs

Which bank is larger?

PNB by a wide margin on deposits and advances.

Which is growing loans faster?

Bank of India at approximately 18.64% versus PNB around 12.7%.

Which is growing deposits faster?

Bank of India at 14.90% versus PNB around 8.5%.

Which has higher CASA?

They are effectively identical at approximately 36.7%.

Which has higher NIM?

They are effectively tied: Bank of India at 2.52% and PNB at 2.50% globally.

Which has higher ROA?

PNB slightly, 1.04% versus Bank of India at 1.01%.

Which has lower GNPA?

Bank of India at 1.81% versus PNB at 2.78%.

Which has lower NNPA?

PNB at 0.28% versus Bank of India at 0.51%.

Which has lower credit cost?

Bank of India at approximately 0.15% versus PNB around 0.25%.

Which has more funding headroom?

PNB because its credit-deposit ratio is substantially lower.

Which stock is cheaper?

Bank of India on both late-August P/E and P/B.

Where can investors compare them on Bull Run?

Use the Bank of India stock page, PNB stock page and Public Sector Bank sector page.

Research sources

• Bull Run — Bank of India
• Bull Run — Punjab National Bank
• Bull Run — Public Sector Bank sector research
• Bank of India official financial results
• Bank of India investor relations
• PNB official financial results and analyst presentation