axis bank ltd Auditors report


To the Members of Axis Bank Limited

Report on the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements

Opinion

We have audited the Standalone Financial Statements of Axis Bank Limited (the Bank), which comprises the Balance Sheet as at March 31, 2023, the Profit and Loss Account and the Cash Flow Statement for the year then ended, and notes to the Standalone Financial Statements including a summary of the significant accounting policies and other explanatory information (hereinafter referred to as Standalone Financial Statements).

In our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us, the aforesaid Standalone Financial Statements give the information required by Section 29 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 as well as the Companies Act, 2013 (the Act) and circulars and guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India, in the manner so required for banking companies and give a true and fair view in conformity with the accounting principles generally accepted in India, including the Accounting Standards prescribed under Section 133 of the Act, read with rules made thereunder, of the state of affairs of the Bank as at March 31, 2023, and its profit, and its cash flows for the year ended on that date.

Basis for Opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with the Standards on Auditing (SAs) specified under Section 143 (10) of the Act. Our responsibilities under those SAs are further described in the Auditors Responsibilities for the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements section of our report. We are independent of the Bank in accordance with the Code of Ethics issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India together with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements under the provisions of the Act, and the Rules thereunder, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements and the Code of Ethics. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained, is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion on the Standalone Financial Statements.

Key Audit Matters

Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgment, were of most significance in our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements for the current year. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters. We have determined the matters prescribed below to be the key audit matters:

Sr. No. Key Audit Matters

How the Matter was addressed in our report

1 Acquisition of Citibanks India Consumer Business

Refer Note No. 1 of Schedule 18 relating to acquisition of the consumer business of Citibank N.A. (CBNA) and Citicorp Finance (India) Ltd (CFIL) as going concerns without assigning values to individual assets and liabilities with effect from beginning of March 01, 2023 (Legal Day One/LD1) by the Bank.

Our approach included understanding the structure of the acquisition, determining the nature, timing and extent of audit procedures, and conducting the same.

The Assets and Liabilities are recognized in the books of the Bank on LD1. The initial purchase consideration was determined and recognized based on the position of business assets and business liabilities acquired as at end of day January 31, 2023. Subsequently, on best estimate of the position of business assets and business liabilities acquired as at beginning of day 1 March, 2023 the purchase consideration was trued up to record a further payable to CBNA at March 31, 2023. These amounts are subject to review of the final closing statement in FY 2023-24, which will also be verified by an independent practitioner.

We have performed following audit procedures for verification of the accounting of acquisition of Citibanks India Consumer Business:

Based on the report of an independent valuer, the estimated adjusted purchase price of Rs 11,949.08 crores is attributed to various intangible business and commercial rights such as Customer Relationship (including contracts), Co-branding arrangements, Business processes/ information, Non-compete rights (collectively "Intangibles") and goodwill. The purchase price allocation between various intangible assets and goodwill involves a significant amount of judgement by the valuer and the Management. The Bank has continued use of the intangible assets for the business purposes. The Bank, as a prudent measure and to protect its ability to pay dividends, has fully amortised these intangible assets and goodwill in the Profit and Loss account for the year.

• Review of the Business Transfer Agreements, Transitional Services Agreement, regulatory approvals and other related documents to obtain an understanding of the structure and terms of the acquisition.

• Verification of the preliminary closing statement prepared by Citibank India for transfer of assets and liabilities based on the position of January 31, 2023 on LD1, best estimates position as on March 1, 2023 as prepared by the Banks Management and subsequent integration post LD1.

• Verification of the integration of Citibanks India Consumer Business accounting records into the financial reporting system of the Bank including verification of the general ledgers mapping between Citibanks India Consumer Business and Axis Bank trial balances, and the process of opening new control accounts.

The value of the purchase consideration, other intangible assets, goodwill and the amounts payable to CBNA are subject to changes based on the final closing statement which is subject to verification by a jointly appointed independent practitioner and independent review by the Bank and CBNA.

• Evaluation of the fair value of the assets acquired along with the valuation methodology and key assumptions applied. We also evaluated the reasonableness of key assumptions and estimates used in the valuation based on our knowledge of the business and industry.

Though the Bank has continued use of the intangible assets for business purposes, as a prudent measure, the depreciation on such intangibles fully amortized through the Profit & Loss Account is not considered for tax purpose in the books.

• Verification of the accounting treatment for other intangible assets and goodwill and tax impact arising out of the allocation of the purchase consideration based on the valuation report accepted by the Management of the Bank.

As per the Business Transfer Agreements executed with CBNA and CFIL, till final migration, the Bank will rely on the Information Technology systems of CBNA/CFIL and data residing therein.

• Understanding and testing the process of resulting accounting effect on various areas such as alignment of accounting estimates and policies, NPA identification, classification and provisioning, employee benefits, operating expenses, taxation and related disclosures.

The accounting of the acquisition has been determined as key audit matter due to the following:

• Materiality and complexities of the said transaction including the estimations involved in recognising the assets and liabilities acquired.

• Assessment of the internal controls in relation to financial reporting for the accounting and reporting on the said acquired consumer business and reviewing the Banks disclosures on the same.

• Assumptions, estimates and judgements used by the Bank and the independent valuer for the purchase price allocation at the time of initial recognition and true-up based on estimated position as on March 01, 2023.

• Evaluation of testing carried out by the Management on existence and operating efficiency of internal control at Citibank India Consumer Business.

• Changes expected, if any, based on the verification of final closing statement by the Bank, CBNA and independent practitioner.

• Evaluation of Managements assessment on treatment of amortisation of intangible assets and goodwill for taxation purposes.

• Reliance placed by the Bank on IT system and internal controls at CBNA/CFIL during the transition period.

2 Information Technology (IT) Systems and controls over financial reporting

The Banks financial accounting and reporting systems are highly dependent on the effective working of the Core Banking Solution (CBS) and other IT systems linked to the CBS or working independently. Considering the extensive volume, diverse nature and complexity of transactions that are processed daily, there is a risk that automated accounting procedures and related internal controls may not be accurately designed and operating effectively. There exists a risk that gaps in the IT control environment could result in the financial accounting and reporting records being materially misstated. Appropriate IT controls are required to ensure that the IT applications perform as planned and the changes made are properly authorized, tested and controlled. Such controls contribute to risk mitigation of erroneous output data. The audit outcome is heavily dependent on the robustness of IT systems and controls.

• We have planned, designed and carried out the desired audit procedures and sample checks, taking into consideration the IT systems of the Bank. For this purpose, we obtained an understanding of the Banks IT environment. As part of our IT controls testing, we have tested IT General Controls (ITGC) as well as IT Automated Controls (ITAC) for select applications.

• The procedures adopted by us are, in our opinion, adequate to provide reasonable assurance on the adequacy of IT controls in place. Critical areas for improvement, if any, as and when noticed are communicated to the Banks Management and the adequacy of action taken by the Bank where necessary, is reviewed by us periodically as part of our audit procedures.

We have identified IT Controls Framework as a Key Audit Matter as the Banks business is highly dependent on technology. The IT environment of the Bank is complex and the design and operating effectiveness of IT controls have a direct impact on its financial reporting process. Review of these controls allows us to provide assurance on the integrity and completeness of data processed through various IT applications which are used for the preparation and presentation of financial reports.

• IT audit specialists are an integral part of our engagement team.

• In addition, we have also relied on IS audit conducted by Internal Audit department, and also the audit of Internal Financial Control over Financial Reporting conducted by Operations Health and Control Team of the Bank.

• We also tested key automated and manual business cycle controls and logic for system generated reports relevant to the audit; including testing of compensating controls or performed alternate procedures to assess whether there were any unaddressed IT risks that would materially impact the Standalone Financial Statements.

• We have also carried out independent alternative audit procedures like substantive testing, analytical procedures etc. to verify the accuracy of the data generated from the IT system.

3. Income Recognition, Asset Classification (IRAC) and provisioning on Loans & Advances and Investments as per the regulatory requirements

Please refer to Note no. 3.4 (a) of Schedule 18 relating to Asset Quality in respect of movement of Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) and related provisions and disclosures with regard to Non Performing Investments (NPI) respectively as also Note no. 2 of Schedule 18 regarding the provisions made due to the potential impact of Covid-19 pandemic.

Our audit approach included testing the design, operating effectiveness of internal controls and substantive audit procedures in respect of income recognition, asset classification and provisioning pertaining to advances and investments. In particular:

• We have evaluated and understood the Banks internal control system in adhering to the relevant RBI guidelines regarding income recognition, asset classification and provisioning pertaining to advances and investments;

The Management of the Bank relies on its automated IT systems to determine asset classification, income recognition, provisioning for standard and non-performing advances/ investments and for compliance of applicable regulatory guidelines issued by the RBI. The Management supplements its assessment by availing services of experts (like independent valuers, lawyers, legal experts and other professionals) to determine the valuation and enforceability of security of such advances/investments.

• We have tested key IT systems/ applications used and their design and implementation as well as operational effectiveness of relevant controls, including involvement of manual process and manual controls in relation to income recognition, asset classification, provisioning pertaining to advances and investments and compliances of other regulatory guidelines issued by the RBI;

The Bank makes provisions for the performing and nonperforming advances/investments, as per its governing framework which includes Managements assessment of the degree of impairment subject to and guided by minimum provisioning levels prescribed under RBI guidelines.

• We have test checked advances to examine the validity of the recorded amounts, loan documentation, examined the statement of accounts, indicators of impairment, impairment provision for non-performing assets, and compliance with income recognition, asset classification and provisioning pertaining to advances in terms of applicable RBI guidelines;

Compliance of relevant prudential norms issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in respect of income recognition, asset classification and provisioning pertaining to advances as well as those pertaining to investments is a key audit matter due to materiality, complexity and uncertainty involved and the current processes at the Bank which requires certain manual interventions, Management estimates and judgement.

• We have evaluated the past trends of Management judgement, governance process and review controls over impairment provision calculations and discussed the provisions made with the top and senior management of the Bank.

• We have also relied on work done by external experts like valuers, lawyers, concurrent auditors etc. on specific areas.

• Critical areas for improvement, if any, as and when noticed are communicated to the Banks Management and the adequacy of action taken by the Bank where necessary, is reviewed by us periodically as part of our audit procedures.

Information other than the Standalone Financial Statements and Auditors Report thereon

The Banks Management and Board of Directors are responsible for the Other Information. The other information comprises the information included in the Annual Report but does not include the Standalone Financial Statements, consolidated financial statements and our auditors report thereon and the Pillar III Disclosures under Basel III Capital Regulation, Leverage Ratio, Liquidity Coverage Ratio and Net Stable Funding Ratio. The other information is expected to be made available to us after the date of this auditors report.

Our opinion on the Standalone Financial Statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements, our responsibility is to read the Other Information identified above when it becomes available and, in doing so, consider whether the Other Information is materially inconsistent with the Standalone Financial Statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated.

When we read the Other Information, if we conclude that there is a material misstatement therein, we are required to communicate the matter to those charged with governance.

Responsibilities of Management and Those Charged with Governance for the Standalone Financial Statements

The Banks Board of Directors and Management are responsible for the matters stated in Section 134(5) of the Act with respect to the preparation of these Standalone Financial Statements that give a true and fair view of the state of affairs, profit and cash flows of the Bank in accordance with the accounting principles generally accepted in India, including the Accounting Standards specified under Section 133 of the Act, provisions of Section 29 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and the circulars and guidelines issued by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from time to time. This responsibility also includes maintenance of adequate accounting records in accordance with the provisions of the Act, for safeguarding of the assets of the Bank and for preventing and detecting frauds and other irregularities; selection and application of appropriate accounting policies; making judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and design, implementation and maintenance of adequate internal financial controls that were operating effectively for ensuring the accuracy and completeness of the accounting records, relevant to the preparation and presentation of the Standalone Financial Statements that give a true and fair view and are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the Standalone Financial Statements, the Management and Board of Directors are responsible for assessing the Banks ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Management and Board of Directors either intends to liquidate the Bank or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

The Board of Directors is also responsible for overseeing the Banks financial reporting process.

Auditors Responsibilities for the Audit of the Standalone Financial Statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the Standalone Financial Statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditors report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with SAs will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these Standalone Financial Statements.

As part of an audit in accordance with SAs, we exercise professional judgment and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:

• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the Standalone Financial Statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

• Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances. Under Section 143(3)(i) of the Act, we are also responsible for expressing our opinion on whether the Bank has adequate internal financial controls with reference to financial statements in place and the operating effectiveness of such controls.

• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures in the Standalone Financial Statements made by the Management and Board of Directors.

• Conclude on the appropriateness of the Management and Board of Directors use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Banks ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditors report to the related disclosures in the Standalone Financial Statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditors report. However, future events or conditions may cause a Bank to cease to continue as a going concern.

• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the Standalone Financial Statements, including the disclosures, and whether the Standalone Financial Statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

We also provide those charged with governance with a statement that we have complied with relevant ethical requirements regarding independence, and to communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought to bear on our independence, and where applicable, related safeguards.

From the matters communicated with those charged with governance, we determine those matters that were of most significance in the audit of the Standalone Financial Statements of the current period and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these matters in our auditors report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the matter or when, in extremely rare circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be communicated in our report because the adverse consequences of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public interest benefits of such communication.

Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements

The standalone balance sheet and the standalone profit and loss account have been drawn up in accordance with the provisions of Section 29 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and Section 133 of the Act.

A. As required by sub-section (3) of Section 30 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, we report that:

(a) we have obtained all the information and explanations which, to the best of our knowledge and belief, were necessary for the purpose of our audit and have found them to be satisfactory;

(b) the transactions of the Bank, which have come to our notice, have been within the powers of the Bank; and

(c) since the key operations of the Bank are automated with the key applications integrated to the core banking systems, the audit is carried out centrally as all the necessary records and data required for the purposes of our audit are available therein. However, during the course of our audit we have visited 95 branches (including credit units) to examine the records maintained at such branches for the purpose of our audit.

B. Further, as required by Section 143(3) of the Act, we report that:

(a) we have sought and obtained all the information and explanations which to the best of our knowledge and belief were necessary for the purposes of our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements;

(b) in our opinion, proper books of account as required by law relating to preparation of the aforesaid Standalone Financial Statements have been kept by the Bank so far as it appears from our examination of those books;

(c) the standalone balance sheet, the standalone profit and loss account, and the standalone cash flow statement dealt with by this Report are in agreement with the relevant books of accounts maintained for the purpose of preparation of the Standalone Financial Statements;

(d) in our opinion, the aforesaid Standalone Financial Statements comply with the Accounting Standards specified under Section 133 of the Act read with relevant rules issued thereunder, to the extent they are not inconsistent with the accounting policies prescribed by RBI;

(e) on the basis of the written representations received from the directors as on March 31, 2023 taken on record by the Board of Directors, none of the directors are disqualified as on March 31, 2023 from being appointed as a director in terms of Section 164 (2) of the Act; and

(f) with respect to the adequacy of the internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements of the Bank and the operating effectiveness of such controls, refer to our separate Report in Annexure A.

C. With respect to the other matters to be included in the Auditors Report in accordance with Rule 11 of the Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014, in our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us:

i. the Bank has disclosed the impact of pending litigations as at March 31, 2023 on its financial position in its Standalone Financial Statements - Refer Schedule 12 - Contingent Liabilities to the Standalone Financial Statements;

ii. the Bank has made provision, as required under the applicable law or accounting standards, for material foreseeable losses, if any, on long-term contracts including derivative contracts - Refer Schedule 5 read with Note No. 4.14 of Schedule 18 to the Standalone Financial Statements in respect of such items as it relates to the Bank;

iii. there has been no delay in transferring amounts, required to be transferred, to the Investor Education and Protection Fund by the Bank;

iv. a. the Management has represented that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, other than as disclosed in the Note No. 4.13 of Schedule 18 to the Standalone Financial Statements, no funds (which are material either individually or in the aggregate) have been advanced or loaned or invested (either from borrowed funds or share premium or any other sources or kind of funds) by the Bank to or in any other person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entities ("Intermediaries"), with the understanding, whether recorded in writing or otherwise, that the Intermediary shall, whether, directly or indirectly lend or invest in other persons or entities identified in any manner whatsoever by or on behalf of the Bank ("Ultimate Beneficiaries") or provide any guarantee, security or the like on behalf of the Ultimate Beneficiaries.

b. further, the Management has represented that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, other than as disclosed in the Note No. 4.13 of Schedule 18 to the Standalone Financial Statements, no funds (which are material either individually or in the aggregate) have been received by the Bank from any person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entities ("Funding Parties"), with the understanding, whether recorded in writing or otherwise, that the Bank shall, whether, directly or indirectly, lend or invest in other persons or entities identified in any manner whatsoever by or on behalf of the Funding Party ("Ultimate Beneficiaries") or provide any guarantee, security or the like on behalf of the Ultimate Beneficiaries.

c. based on such audit procedures that were considered reasonable and appropriate in the circumstances, nothing has come to our notice that has caused us to believe that the representations under sub-clause (a) and (b) above contain any material misstatement.

v. a. the final dividend paid by the Bank during the year in respect of the same declared for the previous year is in accordance with Section 123 of the Companies Act 2013 to the extent it applies to payment of dividend.

b. as stated in Note no 4.3 of Schedule 18 to the Standalone Financial Statements, the Board of Directors of the Bank has proposed final dividend for the financial year 2022-2023 which is subject to the approval of the members at the ensuing Annual General Meeting. The amount of dividend proposed is in accordance with Section 123 of the Companies Act.

vi. as proviso to Rule 3(1) of the Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014 is applicable for the Bank with effect from April 1, 2023, reporting under Rule 11(g) of the Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules 2014 on using accounting software which has a feature of recording audit trail (edit log) facility is not applicable.

D. With respect to the matter to be included in the Auditors Report under Section 197(16) of the Act:

The Bank is a banking company as defined under Banking Regulation Act, 1949. Accordingly, the requirements prescribed under Section 197 of the Companies Act, 2013 do not apply by virtue of Section 35B(2A) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

For M. P. Chitale & Co. For CNK & Associates LLP
Chartered Accountants Chartered Accountants
ICAI FRN 101851W ICAI FRN 101961W/W100036
Ashutosh Pednekar Manish Sampat
Partner Partner
ICAI M. No. 041037 ICAI M. No. 101684
UDIN: 23041037BGPVNO4178 UDIN: 23101684BGWNCD8422
Place: Mumbai Place: Mumbai
Date: April 27, 2023 Date: April 27, 2023

Annexure A to the Independent Auditors Report of even date on the Standalone Financial Statements of Axis Bank Limited for the year ended March 31, 2023

Report on the Internal Financial Controls with reference to the aforesaid Standalone Financial Statements under Clause (i) of Sub-section 3 of Section 143 of the Companies Act, 2013 ("the Act")

We have audited the internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements of Axis Bank Limited ("the Bank") as of March 31, 2023 in conjunction with our audit of the Standalone Financial Statements of the Bank for the year ended on that date.

Managements Responsibility for Internal Financial Controls

The Banks Management and Board of Directors are responsible for establishing and maintaining internal financial controls based on the internal control over financial reporting criteria established by the Bank considering the essential components of internal control stated in the Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting (the Guidance Note) issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (the ICAI). These responsibilities include the design, implementation and maintenance of adequate internal financial controls that were operating effectively for ensuring the orderly and efficient conduct of its business, including adherence to the Banks policies, the safeguarding of its assets, the prevention and detection of frauds and errors, the accuracy and completeness of the accounting records, and the timely preparation of reliable financial information, as required under the Companies Act, 2013 ("the Act").

Auditors Responsibility

Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Banks internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements based on our audit. We conducted our audit in accordance with the Guidance Note issued by the ICAI and the Standards on Auditing (the Standards), prescribed under Section 143(10) of the Act, to the extent applicable to an audit of internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements. Those Standards and the Guidance Note require that we comply with ethical requirements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether adequate internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements were established and maintained and whether such controls operated effectively in all material respects.

Our audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the adequacy of the internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements and their operating effectiveness.

Our audit of internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements included obtaining an understanding of internal financial controls, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. The procedures selected depend on the auditors judgment, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the Standalone Financial Statements, whether due to fraud or error.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion on the Banks internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements

Meaning of Internal Financial Controls with Reference to Financial Statements

A Banks internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of Standalone Financial Statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Banks internal financial control with reference to financial statement includes those policies and procedures that

1) Pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Bank;

2) Provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of Standalone Financial Statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the Bank are being made only in accordance with authorisations of Management and Directors of the Bank; and

3) Provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorised acquisition, use, or disposition of the Banks assets that could have a material effect on the Standalone Financial Statements.

Inherent Limitations of Internal Financial Controls with Reference to Financial Statements

Because of the inherent limitations of internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements, including the possibility of collusion or improper management override of controls, material misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected. Also, projections of any evaluation of the internal financial controls with reference to Standalone Financial Statements to future periods are subject to the risk that the internal financial control with reference to standalone financial statement become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Opinion

In our opinion the Bank has maintained, in all respects, an adequate internal financial control system with reference to Standalone Financial Statements and such internal financial controls with reference to the Standalone Financial Statements were operating effectively as at March 31, 2023, based on internal control over financial reporting criteria established by the Bank considering the essential components of internal control stated in the Guidance Note.

For M. P. Chitale & Co. For CNK & Associates LLP
Chartered Accountants Chartered Accountants
ICAI FRN 101851W ICAI FRN 101961W/W100036
Ashutosh Pednekar Manish Sampat
Partner Partner
ICAI M. No. 041037 ICAI M. No. 101684
UDIN: 23041037BGPVNO4178 UDIN: 23101684BGWNCD8422
Place: Mumbai Place: Mumbai
Date: April 27, 2023 Date: April 27, 2023