1. We have audited the accompanying Standalone FinancialStatements of Central Bank Of India ("the Bank"), whichcomprise the Balance Sheet as at March 31,2026, the Profitand Loss Account and the Cash Flows Statement for the yearthen ended, and Notes to Standalone Financial Statementsincluding a summary of significant accounting policies andother explanatory information in which are included thereturns for the year ended on that date of
i. The Central Office, 14 Zones, 1 Integrated TreasuryBranch, Top 20 branches and other Central Officedepartments audited by us;
ii. 1952 branches and other offices audited by respectiveStatutory Branch Auditors;
The branches audited by us and those audited by otherauditors have been selected by the Bank in accordance withthe guidelines issued to the Bank by the Reserve Bank ofIndia (RBI). Also incorporated in the Balance Sheet, the Profitand Loss Account and the Cash Flows Statement are thereturns from 2613 branches which have not been subjectedto audit. These unaudited branches account for 19.26% ofadvances, 38.50% of deposits, 21.94% of interest incomeand 35.77% of interest expenses.
In our opinion and to the best of our information andaccording to the explanations given to us, the aforesaidStandalone Financial Statements give the informationrequired by the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (hereinafterreferred to as "the Act") in the manner so required for theBank and are in conformity with accounting principlesgenerally accepted in India and:
a) the Balance Sheet, read with the notes thereon is a fulland fair Balance Sheet containing all the necessaryparticulars, is properly drawn up so as to exhibit a trueand fair view of the state of affairs of the Bank as atMarch 31, 2026;
b) the Profit and Loss Account, read with the notes thereonshows a true balance of profit for the year ended on thatdate; and
c) the Cash Flow Statement gives a true and fair view of thecash flows for the year ended on that date.
Basis for Opinion
2. We conducted our audit in accordance with the Standardson Auditing ("SAs") issued by the Institute of CharteredAccountants of India ("ICAI"). Our responsibilities underthose Standards are further described in the "Auditor'sResponsibilities for the Audit of the Standalone FinancialStatements" section of our report. We are independent of theBank in accordance with the Code of Ethics issued by theICAI together with ethical requirements that are relevant toour audit of the Standalone Financial Statements, preparedin accordance with the accounting principles generallyaccepted in India, including the applicable AccountingStandards issued by the ICAI, and provisions of section29 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and circulars andguidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India ("RBI")from time to time and we have fulfilled our other ethicalresponsibilities in accordance with these requirements andthe Code of Ethics. We believe that the audit evidence wehave obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basisfor our opinion on the Standalone Financial Statements.
Emphasis of Matter
3. We draw attention to:
Refer Schedule 18 - Note no. 15(m) of the Statement regardingdeferred tax, wherein on the basis of tax review made by theBank's management with respect to the possible tax benefitsarising out of the timing difference, the net deferred tax assetof '1,628.06 Crore is recognised as on March 31, 2026('3,145.57 crore as on March 31,2025).
4. Refer Schedule 18 - Note no. 15(a)(iii) of the statementregarding change in method of depreciation on fixed assetsfrom the Written Down Value (WDV) method to the Straight¬Line Method (SLM) which has resulted in a decrease in
depreciation and an increase in profit before tax of '49.30crores for the year ended March 31,2026.
Our opinion is not modified respect of the above matters.
Key Audit Matters
5. Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professionaljudgment, were of most significance in our audit of the
Standalone Financial Statements for the year ended March31, 2026. These matters were addressed in the context ofour audit of the Standalone Financial Statements as a whole,and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not providea separate opinion on these matters. We have determinedthe matters described below to be the key audit matters to becommunicated in our report.
How the matter was addressed in our Audit
1. Identification and provisioning of non-performing advances
Our audit approach included assessment of the design, operating
made in accordance with the prudential norms prescribed
effectiveness of key internal controls over approval, recording
by Reserve Bank of India on Income recognition, Asset
and monitoring of loans and substantive audit procedures
Classification and provisioning pertaining to Advances
in
respect of income recognition, asset classification and
(refer Schedule 9 read with Note 3 of Schedule 17 to the
provisioning pertaining to advances.
Standalone Financial Statements)
Advances comprise substantial portion of the Bank's total
In
particular:
assets. Identification of non-performing advances (NPAs)
•
We have evaluated and understood the Bank's internal control
is carried out, based on system identification, by the Core
system in adhering to the relevant RBI guidelines regarding
Banking Solution (CBS) software in operation based on the
income recognition, asset classification and provisioning
various controls and logic embedded therein.
pertaining to advances.
Provisions in respect of such NPAs and restructured advances
We assessed and evaluated the process of identification of
are made based on management's assessment of the degreeof impairment of the advances subject to and guided bythe minimum provisioning levels prescribed under RBIguidelines, prescribed from time to time. The provisionson NPAs are also based on the valuation of the securityavailable. In case of restructured accounts, provision ismade in accordance with the RBI guidelines.
NPAs, and corresponding reversal of income and creation ofprovision.
We have analysed and understood key IT systems/ applicationsused operational effectiveness of relevant controls includinginvolvement of manual process and manual controls inrelation to income recognition, asset classification andprovisioning pertaining to advances.
We identified NPA identification and provision on loans andadvances as a key audit matter because of the significant
efforts involved by the management in identifying NPAsbased on the RBI Guidelines, the level of management
In order to ensure the effectiveness of the operation of the keycontrols and compliance to the directions of the RBI, we have
judgement involved in determining the provision (including
verified whether both CBS system and the management have:
the provisions on assets which are not classified as NPAs),the valuation of security of the NPAs and on account of the
timely recognized the depletion in the value of available
significance of these estimates to the Standalone Financial
security.
Statements of the Bank. In the event of any improper
made adequate provisioning based on such time-to-time
application of the prudential norms or consideration
monitoring and identification of asset classification including
of incorrect value of security, the carrying value of the
accounts which meet the criteria for asset classification benefit
advances could be materially misstated either individually
in accordance with the Reserve Bank of India COVID-19
or collectively.
Regulatory Package.
We have reviewed on test check basis the reports of theConcurrent Audits, Internal Inspections, Regulatory audits,Revenue Audits etc. to ascertain whether the advances are
having any shortcomings or adverse features, requiringadditional audit procedures.
We placed reliance upon the Independent Auditor's Reportof the respective Branch Auditors with respect to incomerecognition, asset classification and provisioning as well asMemorandum of changes suggested both at the branches andat Head Office.
2. Investments
Investment portfolio of the Bank comprises of investments ingovernment securities, bonds, debentures, shares, securityreceipts and other approved securities which are classifiedunder three categories, Held to Maturity, Available for Saleand Fair Value through Profit and Loss. Investments comprisea substantial portion of the Bank's total assets.
Our audit approach towards Investments with reference to the RBIcirculars/ directives included the review and testing of the design,operating effectiveness of internal controls and substantive auditprocedures in relation to valuation, classification, identificationof Non-Performing Investments, provisioning/ depreciationrelated to Investments. In particular:
• We assessed and understood the system and internal control
Valuation of Investments, identification of Non-Performing
as laid down by the Bank to comply with relevant RBI
Investments (NPI) and the corresponding non-recognition of
guidelines regarding valuation, classification, identification of
income and provision thereon, is carried out in accordance
Non- Performing Investments, Provisioning and depreciation
with the relevant circulars / guidelines / directions of RBI.(refer Schedule 8 read with Note 5 of Schedule 17 to the
on Investments.
Standalone Financial Statements).
• Tested accuracy and compliance for selected sample of
investments with the RBI Master circulars and directions
The valuation of each type of aforesaid security is to be
by re-performing valuation for each category of security in
carried out as per the methodology prescribed in thecirculars and directives issued by the RBI which involves
accordance with the RBI guidelines.
collection of data/ information from various sources such as
• We assessed and evaluated the process of identification of
FBIL rates, rates quoted on BSE/ NSE, financial statements of
NPIs, and corresponding reversal of income and creation of
unlisted companies, NAV in case of security receipts etc.
provision.
As per the RBI directions, there are certain investments that
• We carried out substantive audit procedures to re-compute
are valued at market price however certain investments
independently the provision to be created and depreciation
are based on the valuation methodologies that include
to be provided.
statistical models with inherent assumptions, assessment of
• We assessed that the standalone financial statement
price for valuation based on financial statements etc. The
disclosures appropriately reflected the Bank's exposure to
price discovered for the valuation of these Investments is
investments valuation risks with reference to the requirements
only a fair assessment of the Investments.
of the prevailing accounting standards and the RBI guidelines.
Hence, the valuation of Investments requires specialattention and further in view of the significance of theamount of Investments in the financial statements, the samehas been considered as Key Audit Matter in our audit.
3. Information technology (IT) systems used in financialreporting process
The Bank's operational and financial reporting processesare dependent on IT systems run through Core BankingSolutions (CBS) and other integrated software with automatedprocesses and controls large volume of transactions.
The process and controls are to ensure appropriate useraccess and management processes in use.
We conducted an assessment and identified key IT applications,database and operating systems that are relevant to our audit andhave identified CBS and Treasury System primarily as relevant forfinancial reporting. For the key IT systems pertaining to CBS andtreasury operations used to prepare accounting and financialinformation, our areas of audit focus included Access Security(including controls over privileged access), application changecontrols, database management and network operations. Inparticular:
The Bank has an in-house Department of Information &technology (DIT) run under the supervision of the topmanagement and with the support of expert consultingagencies, for maintaining IT services.
Accordingly, our audit was focused on key IT systems andcontrols due to the pervasive Impact on the StandaloneFinancial Statements and the same has been considered asKey Audit Matter in our audit.
• We obtained an understanding of the Bank's IT controlenvironment and key changes during the audit period thatmay be relevant to the audit.
• We tested the design, implementation and operatingeffectiveness of the Bank's General IT controls over the keyIT systems that are critical to financial reporting includingobtaining reports from independent experts. This includedevaluation of Bank's controls to evaluate segregation of dutiesand access rights being provisioned / modified based on dulyapproved requests, access for exit cases being revoked in atimely manner.
• We also tested key automated and manual business cyclecontrols and logic for system generated reports relevantto the audit; including testing of compensating controls orperformed alternate procedures to assess whether there wereany unaddressed IT risks that would materially impact theStandalone Financial Statements, information other thanthe standalone Financial Statements and Auditors' Reportthereon.
4. Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Claims:
We have obtained an understanding of Internal Controls relevant
Assessment of Provisions and Contingent Liability in respectof certain litigations on various claims filed by other partiesnot acknowledged as debt (Note No. 14 of Schedule 17 and
to the audit in order to design our audit procedures that areappropriate in the circumstances.
Note No. 15(r) of Schedule 18).
We broadly reviewed the underlying assumptions and estimatesused by the management for provisioning but as the extent of
There is high level of judgement required in estimating the
impact is dependent on future developments which are highly
level of provisioning. The Bank's assessment is supported by
uncertain, we primarily relied on those assumptions and
the facts of matter, their own judgement, past experience,
estimates, which are subject matter of periodic review by the
and advice from legal and independent experts whereverconsidered necessary. Accordingly, unexpected adverse
Bank.
outcomes may significantly impact the Bank's reportedprofit and state of affairs presented in Balance Sheet.
We have relied upon the management note and legal opinionsobtained by the bank regarding the claims and tax litigations and
Contingent Liability is a possible obligation, outcome of
involved our internal team to review the nature of such litigations
which is contingent upon occurrence or non-occurrence of
and claims, their current status, sustainability, examining
one or more uncertain future events. In the judgement of
recent orders and/or communication received from various
the management, such claims and litigations including tax
tax authorities/judicial forums and follow up actions thereon
demands against the bank would not eventually lead to a
and likelihood of claims/litigations materializing into eventual
liability.
liability upon final resolution, from the available records and
However, unexpected adverse outcomes may significantlyimpact the Bank's reported financial results which isuncertain/ unascertainable at this stage.
developments to date.
Considering the uncertainty relating to the outcome ofthese matters which requires application of judgment ininterpretation of law, this has been determined as a keyAudit Matter.
Other Matters
6. We did not audit the financial statements/ information of1952 branches and other offices included in the StandaloneFinancial Statements of the Bank whose financial statements/ financial information reflect total assets of '2,98,880.60crore as at March 31,2026 and total revenue of '11,985.47crore for the year ended on that date, as considered in theStandalone Financial Statements. These branches cover42.13% of advances, 57.16% of deposits and 23.90% ofnon-performing assets as at March 31, 2026 and 46.42%of revenue for the year ended on that date. The financialstatements/ information of these branches have been auditedby the statutory branch auditors whose reports have beenfurnished to us, and our opinion in so far as it relates to theamounts and disclosures included in respect of branches, isbased solely on the report of such statutory branch auditors.
7. In the conduct of our audit, we have taken note of theunaudited returns in respect of 2613 branches certified by therespective branch's management whose financial statements/information reflect total assets of '99,025.15 crore as atMarch 31, 2026 and total revenue of '6,354.54 crore forthe year ended on that date. These unaudited branches cover19.26% of advances, 38.50% of deposits and 12.95% ofnon-performing assets as on March 31,2026 and 24.61% ofrevenue for the year then ended.
Our opinion is not modified in respect of the above matters.
Information other than the StandaloneFinancial Statements and Auditors' reportthereon
8. The Bank's Board of Directors is responsible for the OtherInformation. The Other Information comprises the CorporateGovernance Report, the Directors' Report includingannexures, Dividend Distribution Policy of Bank, BusinessResponsibility and Sustainability Report, ManagementDiscussion and Analysis, Key Financial indicators and otherShareholder information, but does not include the StandaloneFinancial Statements and our auditor's report thereon. Theabove Other Information is expected to be made available tous after the date of this audit report.
Our opinion on the Standalone Financial Statements doesnot cover the Other Information and the Pillar 3 disclosuresunder Capital Adequacy Framework (Basel III disclosures)and we do not and will not express any form of assuranceconclusion thereon.
In connection with our audit of the Standalone FinancialStatements, our responsibility is to read the Other Informationidentified above and, in doing so, consider whether the OtherInformation is materially inconsistent with the StandaloneFinancial Statements, or our knowledge obtained in the auditor otherwise appears to be materially misstated.
When we read the Other Information, if we conclude thatthere is material misstatement therein, we are required tocommunicate the matter to Those Charged with Governance(TCWG).
Responsibilities of Management and ThoseCharged with Governance for the StandaloneFinancial Statements
9. The Bank's Board of Directors is responsible with respect tothe preparation of these Standalone Financial Statements thatgive a true and fair view of the financial position, financialperformance and cash flows of the Bank in accordancewith the accounting principles generally accepted inIndia, including the applicable Accounting Standards, andprovisions of Section 29 of the Banking Regulation Act,1949 and circulars and guidelines issued by the ReserveBank of India ('RBI') from time to time ("RBI guidelines") andjudicial pronouncements. This responsibility also includesmaintenance of adequate accounting records in accordancewith the provisions of the Act for safeguarding of the assetsof the Bank and for preventing and detecting frauds andother irregularities; selection and application of appropriateaccounting policies; making judgments and estimates thatare reasonable and prudent; and design, implementationand maintenance of adequate internal financial controls,that were operating effectively for ensuring the accuracyand completeness of the accounting records, relevant to thepreparation and presentation of the Standalone FinancialStatements that give a true and fair view and are freefrom material misstatement, whether due to fraud or errorwhich have been used for the purpose of preparation of theStatement by the Board of Directors of the Bank as aforesaid.
In preparing the Standalone Financial Statements,management is responsible for assessing the Bank's abilityto continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable,matters related to going concern and using the going concernbasis of accounting unless management either intends toliquidate the Bank or to cease operations, or has no realisticalternative but to do so. The Board of Directors are alsoresponsible for overseeing the Bank's financial reportingprocess.
Auditors' Responsibilities for the Audit of theStandalone Financial Statements
10. Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance aboutwhether the Standalone Financial Statements as a wholeare free from material misstatement, whether due to fraudor error, and to issue an auditors' report that includes ouropinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurancebut is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordancewith SAs will always detect a material misstatement when itexists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and areconsidered material if, individually or in aggregate, theycould reasonably be expected to influence the economicdecisions of users taken on the basis of these StandaloneFinancial Statements.
As part of an audit in accordance with SAs, we exerciseprofessional judgment and maintain professional skepticismthroughout the audit. We also:
• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatementof the Standalone Financial Statements, whether dueto fraud or error, design and perform audit proceduresresponsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence thatis sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for ouropinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatementresulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting fromerror, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentionalomissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internalcontrol.
• Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant tothe audit in order to design audit procedures that areappropriate in the circumstances for expressing ouropinion on whether the bank has adequate internalfinancial controls with reference to financial statementsand the operating effectiveness of such control.
• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies usedand the reasonableness of accounting estimates andrelated disclosures made by management.
• Conclude on the appropriateness of management's use ofthe going concern basis of accounting and, based on theaudit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertaintyexists related to events or conditions that may castsignificant doubt on the Bank's ability to continue as agoing concern. If we conclude that a material uncertaintyexists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor'sreport to the related disclosures in the StandaloneFinancial Statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate,to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on theaudit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor'sreport. However, future events or conditions may causethe Bank to cease to continue as a going concern.
• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and contentof the Standalone financial statements, including thedisclosures, and whether the Standalone financialstatements represent the underlying transactions andevents in a manner that achieves fair presentation.
Materiality is the magnitude of the misstatements in theStandalone Financial Statements that, individually oraggregate, makes it probable that the economic decisions ofa reasonably knowledgeable user of the Standalone FinancialStatements may be influenced. We consider quantitativemateriality and qualitative factors in (i) planning of the scopeof our audit work and in evaluating the results of our work;and (ii) to evaluate the effect of any identified misstatementin the Standalone Financial Statements.
We communicate with those charge with governanceregarding, among other matters, the planned scope andtiming of the audit and significant audit findings, includingany significant deficiencies in internal control that weidentify during our audit.
We also provide those charged with governance with astatement that we have complied with relevant ethicalrequirements regarding independence, and to communicatewith them all relationships and other matters that mayreasonably be thought to bear on our independence, andwhere applicable, related safeguards.
From the matters communicated with those charged withgovernance, we determine those matters that were ofmost significance in the audit of the Standalone financialstatements of the current period and are therefore the keyaudit matters. We describe these matters in our auditors'
report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosureabout the matter or when, in extremely rare circumstances,we determine that a matter should not be communicatedin our report because the adverse consequences of doingso would reasonably be expected to outweigh the publicinterest benefits of such communication.
Report on Other Legal and RegulatoryRequirements
11. The Balance sheet and the Profit and Loss Account havebeen drawn up in accordance with Section 29 of the BankingRegulation Act, 1949;
Subject to the limitations of the audit indicated in paragraphs6 to 10 above and as required by the Banking Companies(Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Act, 1970/1980,based on our audit on the consideration of report of the otherauditors on separate financial statements and subject also tothe limitations of disclosure required therein, we report that:
a) We have obtained all the information and explanationswhich, to the best of our knowledge and belief, werenecessary for the purposes of our audit and have foundthem to be satisfactory;
b) The transactions of the Bank, which have come to ournotice, have been within the powers of the Bank; and
c) The returns received from the offices and branches of theBank have been found adequate for the purposes of ouraudit.
12. As required by letter No. DOS.ARG.No. 6270/08.91.001/2019-20 dated March 17, 2020 on "Appointment of StatutoryCentral Auditors (SCAs) in Public Sector Banks - Reportingobligations for SCAs from FY 2019-20", read with subsequentcommunication dated May 19, 2020 issued by the RBI, wefurther report on the matters specified in paragraph 2 of theaforesaid letter as under:
a) In our opinion, the aforesaid Standalone FinancialStatements comply with the applicable AccountingStandards issued by ICAI, to the extent they are notinconsistent with the accounting policies prescribed byRBI.
b) There are no observations or comments on financialtransactions or matters which have any adverse effect onthe functioning of the Bank.
c) As the Bank is not registered under the CompaniesAct, 2013 the disqualifications from being a directorof the bank under sub-section (2) of Section 164 of theCompanies Act, 2013 do not apply to the bank.
d) There are no qualifications, reservations or adverseremarks relating to the maintenance of accounts andother matters connected therewith.
e) Our audit report on the adequacy and operatingeffectiveness of the Bank's internal financial controlsover financial reporting as required by the RBI Letter No.DOS. ARG. No. 6270/ 08.91.001/2019- 20 dated March1 7, 2020 (as amended) with reference to standalonefinancial statements is given in Annexure A to this
report. Our report expresses an unmodified opinionon the Bank's internal financial controls over financialreporting with reference to the Standalone FinancialStatements as at March 31,2026.
13. We further report that:
a) In our opinion, proper books of account as requiredby law have been kept by the Bank so far as it appearsfrom our examination of those books and proper returnsadequate for the purposes of our audit have beenreceived from branches not visited by us.
b) the Balance Sheet, the Profit and Loss Account andthe Cash Flow Statement dealt with by this report arein agreement with the books of account and with thereturns received from the branches not visited by us.
c) the reports on the accounts of the branch offices auditedby branch auditors of the Bank under section 29 of theBanking Regulation Act, 1949 have been sent to us andhave been properly dealt with by us in preparing thisreport; and
d) In our opinion, the Balance Sheet, the Profit and LossAccount and the Cash Flow Statement comply with theapplicable accounting standards, to the extent they arenot inconsistent with the accounting policies prescribedby RBI.
Chartered Accountants Chartered Accountants
FRN: 005593C FRN: 011046C
PARTNER PARTNER
M. No.: 409937 M. No.: 400917
UDIN: 26409937ZDXLJR1924 UDIN: 26400917VEKXHT3374
FRN: 000483C FRN.: 012127N
M. No.: 403861 M. No.: 090991
UDIN: 26403861VYPBWR3857 UDIN: 26090991 RQXBWI4075
Place : MumbaiDate : April 30, 2026