IDFC First Bank (stylised asIDFC FIRST Bank) is an Indianprivate sectorbank based in Mumbai. Founded in 2015 as a banking subsidiary ofIDFC Limited, it shifted focus from infrastructure financing to retail banking after its 2018 merger withCapital First.[6] In 2024, IDFC First Bank took over the parent company IDFC Limited in areverse merger.[7]
In 2005, TheGovernment of India andIDBI Bank, a public sector bank were the sponsor shareholders of IDFC. The government brought down its stake to 34.91% through IDFC's initial public offering in 2005.[9]
In 2014, theReserve Bank of India granted in-principle approval to IDFC Limited to set up a new bank in the private sector.[10] Following this, the IDFC Limited divested its infrastructure finance assets and liabilities to a new entity - IDFC Bank. The bank was launched through this demerger from IDFC Limited, and it was officially inaugurated by thePrime Minister of IndiaNarendra Modi in October 2015.[11][12]
IDFC Bank started operations on 1 October 2015.[13][14] The parent entity, IDFC Limited, retained the asset management, institutional broking and infrastructure debt fund businesses through IDFC Financial Holding Company Limited (IDFC FHCL).[15]
IDFC Bank faced challenges due to bad loans from legacy infrastructure accounts. A planned merger with theShriram Group was called off. By September 2017, the bank's deposits totaled₹38,890 crore, with aCASA ratio of just 8.2%.[16]
In January 2018, IDFC Bank andMSME financing company Capital First announced a merger.[17] Capital First was founded as Future Capital Holdings under theFuture Group, and was acquired byWarburg Pincus andV. Vaidyanathan in 2012.[18][19] As per a September 2017 stock filing, Capital First had a retail loan portfolio of₹229.7 billion.[20] 139 shares of IDFC Bank were issued for every 10 shares of Capital First as part of the merger share swap.[21]
The merger completed in December 2018, with IDFC Bank changing its name to IDFC First Bank.[22][23] Vaidyanathan took over as the MD and CEO of the merged entity. The Reserve Bank of India approved his appointment for a period of three years, effective from 19 December 2018.[24]
The bank transitioned from infrastructure financing toretail banking in four years since the merger. Its CASA ratio increased from 8.6% to 49.77% and retail deposits went up from 27% to 76% of total deposits, as of March 2023.[25][26]
In July 2023, the board of the bank approved the merger with IDFC Limited.[27][28] After receiving clearance from theCompetition Commission of India[29] and the Reserve Bank of India,[30] the merger proposal was approved by theNational Company Law Tribunal in May 2024. The proposal, endorsed by the bank's shareholders and NCD holders, involved two steps–IDFC FHCL merging with IDFC Limited, followed by IDFC Limited merging into IDFC First Bank.[31][32]
On 1 October 2024, IDFC Limited merged with the bank.[33] As a result of the merger, 155 equity shares of the bank were allotted for every 100 equity shares of IDFC Limited held by each shareholder in the latter.[34]
On 22 February 2023, IDFC Limited announced that it would invest₹2,200 crore in the bank, increasing its stake in the bank up to 40% from 36.38%.[35] Also, on 22 February 2023, the bank issued 12,03,745 equity shares to its employees under the company ESOP plan.[36]
On 12 September 2023, US-basedGQG Partners acquired an additional 5.1 crore shares, equivalent to a 0.76% stake, from V. Vaidyanathan in a block deal conducted on the stock exchange. As a result, GQG Partners' ownership in the bank rose to 3.36%.[37][38]
In July 2024,Life Insurance Corporation raised its stake in the bank to 2.68% by purchasing shares of the lender at Rs 80.63 each, with a total acquisition cost of₹1,500 crore (US$180 million).[39]
In May 2025, Warburg Pincus initiated the acquisition of a 10% stake by seeking approval from theCompetition Commission of India.[40][41] However, the institutional shareholders rejected the proposal to grant the group a board seat.[42]
As of November 2022, the bank had 809 branches, 249 asset service centres, 925 ATMs, and 606 rural business correspondent centres across the country.[43][44][45]
In 2017, IDFC Bank launched anAadhaar-linked cashless merchant solution.[50][51]
The bank became a member of theOpen Network for Digital Commerce in September 2022. Subsequently, it began enrolling small merchants, who are existing customers with current accounts, onto a partner application registered with ONDC.[52][53] In 2023, it launchedcentral bank digital currency under the guidance of the RBI.[54]
The bank's rural lending portfolio consists of 60% women borrowers, as of October 2023.[55] The typical loan size is ₹2-3 lakh. The portfolio has a 99.7% collection rate, a gross NPA of 1.2%, and a net NPA of 0.3%.[56]
In South and Central India, the rural lending is led by IDFC First Bharat Limited (IFBL) which traces its roots toGrama Vidiyal, aTamil Nadu-based public charitable trust established in 1986. In 2003, it became amicrofinance institution calledGrama Vidiyal Micro Finance Limited (GVMFL). In 2016, IDFC Bank acquired GVMFL, turning it into a wholly owned subsidiary of the bank.[57][58] GVMFL later became known as IDFC First Bharat Limited.[59]
In the financial year 2024, the bank had acapital adequacy ratio of 16.82%.[60] As of 30 September 2024, the overall grossnon-performing asset (NPA) ratio is 1.92%, while the net NPA ratio is 0.48%.[61]
Under bank's employee-fundedGhar Ghar Ration program, the bank employees will supply ration kits to 50,000 low income customers whose livelihoods has been impacted by the pandemic.[66] As many as 16,000 beneficiaries have been reached across Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Gujarat, Karnataka, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh under this program. The lender has also identified 250 vulnerable families who have lost an earning member of their family toCOVID-19 with a cash relief support of ₹10,000 in a partnership with 'Give India'.[67]
Mishra, Pooja; Guru Sant, Tatavarty (22 February 2024). "Examine the level of environmental, social and governance disclosure in sustainability report – a study of the Indian banking sector".International Journal of Innovation Science.16 (2).Emerald Group Publishing:420–442.doi:10.1108/IJIS-08-2022-0136.ISSN1757-2223.
₹36,257 crore (US$4.3 billion) (2024)[1]
NIFTY 200 companies