Treasury bills (short-term debt instruments) remained the dominant component of banks’ investment portfolios, with their share rising significantly from 50.3% in April 2025 to 64.7% in April 2026.
In contrast, the share of long-term securities declined from 49.4% to 34.8% over the same period, indicating banks preference for instruments with shorter maturities.
Equity investments remained minimal though its share edged up marginally from 0.3% to 0.5%.
Meanwhile, the asset composition of the banking sector’s balance sheet in April 2026 reflected portfolio rebalancing towards investments and net advances.
As a result, investments (comprising bills, securities, and equities) emerged as the largest asset class, with its share rising from 34.7% in April 2025 to 41.8% in April 2026.
Similarly, the share of net advances increased marginally to 20.1% from 19.3%.
In contrast, the proportion of cash and bank balances declined from 36.6% to 30.3%, consistent with the shift in portfolio allocation, while non-earning assets (fixed and other assets) decreased from 9.4% to 7.7% over the review period.
