Total income increased by 34.3% YoY to Rs 146.16 crore during the quarter.

Operating profit increased by 95.6% to Rs 61.55 crore in Q2 FY22 from Rs 31.47 crore in Q2 FY21.

Spread on loans stood at 5.6% in Q2 FY22 compared to 5.5% in Q1 FY22 and 4.8% in Q2 FY21.

Provisions and Contingencies in the second quarter declined by 72.1% to Rs 3.33 crore from Rs 11.95 crore recorded in the same period last year. ECL provision as on 30 September 2021 was Rs 49.6 crore; resulting in total provision to loans outstanding ratio at 1.3%; and the Stage 3 provision coverage ratio is at 77.4%.

The company reported a pre-tax profit of Rs 56.31 crore in Q2 FY22, which is significantly higher as compared with Rs 17.57 crore reported in the corresponding period last fiscal.

The housing financier's asset under management (AUM) increased by 23.8% YoY to Rs 4,617 crore in Q2 FY22. It recorded disbursements of Rs 515 crore in Q2 FY22, registering a YoY growth of 111.9%.

Total CRAR was at 56.4% and Tier I capital stood at 55.2% as on 30 September 2021.

Manoj Viswanathan, MD & CEO said: “We expect the upward trend to continue as the opportunity remains large; with low interest rates and muted home prices, driving strong business growth.

Bounce rates improved in Oct'21 to 15% (Q2 FY22 – 16.5%, Q1 FY22 – 18.3%). Our Gross Stage 3 declined in-line with expectation by around 20 bps to 1.7%. We also supported 106 customers (0.3% of POS) with restructuring as they were impacted by COVID.

Two of the independent directors of the company who have steered Home First since over the last 10 years have decided to resign from the board. Sujatha Venkatramanan has resigned from the board due to increasing professional commitments and Sakti Prasad Ghosh has decided to step down due to his advanced age and a desire to reduce his overall responsibilities.

The board of directors, in line with the succession policy of the company, based on the recommendation of the nomination and remuneration committee and subject to shareholder approval, has approved the proposal for the appointment of Geeta Dutta Goel and Anuj Srivastava as Additional directors on the board of the company to function as non-executive independent directors ; w.e.f. 1st Nov'21.

Considering the new phase of growth and expansion, the company proposes to augment the management team with the appointment of a chief technology officer (CTO) & chief risk officer (CRO). Dharmvir Singh and Ashishkumar Darji will be joining the management team as CTO and CRO, respectively. These appointments underline our focus and commitment to two critical factors that have contributed to the company's success in affordable housing finance viz. technology and risk management.”

Home First Finance Company is a technology driven affordable housing finance company (HFC) focused on first-time home buyers in low and middle-income groups. It primarily offers housing loans for the purchase or construction of homes.