Tamilnad Mercantile Bank is targeting around 18 percent growth in total business, with advances expected to exceed 20 percent and deposits likely to grow at about 16 percent year-on-year, the bank’s CEO Salee Sukumaran Nair said.

During Q4 analyst call, Nair said the growth is expected to come from momentum in core operations driven by MSME revival and gold loan expansion.

“We have always said we will continuously look at what we have performed for the quarter and the year. For the full year, we are looking at advances growth crossing the 20 percent mark, while deposits, which stood at 14.94 percent, will see an addition of about one percentage point to reach 16 percent year-on-year," Nair said.

"That will be our internal benchmark, with overall business growth of around 18 percent,” the CEO added.

The bank’s advances growth continues to be supported by a strong gold loan portfolio alongside a revival in MSME lending.

“This quarter as well, gold loans have supported growth, but we are also seeing a revival in MSME, which is growing at about 15 percent. The combination of gold loan growth and revival in MSME lending has led to advances growth of over 20 percent,” the CEO added.

On external headwinds, the CEO said earlier tariff-related pressures have largely subsided. “Tariffs were a challenge, but we have practically worked through that and the issue now seems to be behind us,” the Nair noted, adding that the larger concern currently is the ongoing West Asia crisis.