Fraud-hit PNB suffers biggest ever quarterly loss

Punjab National Bank (PNB) reported a 134.17 billion-rupee ($1.98 billion) fourth-quarter net loss on Tuesday, the biggest ever by an Indian lender as the state-run bank booked provisions to cover a massive fraud.

In what has been dubbed the largest fraud in Indian banking history, PNB - the second-biggest state-run lender and fourth-biggest overall - disclosed in February that two jewellery groups had defrauded it of more than $2 billion, raising credit overseas from mostly other Indian banks with fake guarantees issued by rogue PNB staff. Police on Monday charged 22 people, including a former head of PNB and two of its current executive directors. A source familiar with the matter said more people were likely to be charged this week.