3 minute read 8 Apr 2020
COVID-19 & its impact on BFSI sector in India

COVID-19: How the pandemic is impacting the BFSI sector in India

3 minute read 8 Apr 2020
Related topics Financial accounting advisory services COVID-19
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COVID-19 may impact the BFSI in a significant way, particularly in their financial reporting for entities that follow Indian GAAP as well as Ind AS.

COVID-19 is an unfolding event bringing uncertainty to every aspect of the society. Safety of the people is the utmost priority along with the continuity of business and providing consistent and transparent financial reporting to stakeholders.

The Government of India and RBI has introduced various economic and fiscal stimulus measures to tide over the COVID-19 crisis. To navigate through these unprecedented times the BFSI needs to focus on liquidity, credit risk, well-being of its employees along with the quality of financial reporting and disclosures. As Coronavirus continues to spread, and more information comes to light, the BFSI sector with 31 March 2020 year-end, needs to consider this impact on their business and in their financial statement reporting.

COVID-19 would impact the financial statements of the entities in the financial services in the areas of ECL, business model assessment, post balance sheet events and certain other key areas.

Our financial accounting advisory services (FAAS) has summarized the impact as below:

1.  Impact on banks

The Reserve Bank of India has taken certain measures to give some relief to the lending institutions in the areas of liquidity, regulation and supervision, and financial markets. In light of these measures, banks need to consider financial and reporting considerations around going concern, liquidity and credit risk assessment, etc.

2. Impact on NBFCs

There may be large-scale business disruptions that can potentially give rise to liquidity issues for certain entities. This might also have consequential impacts on the credit quality along the supply chain. The deterioration in credit quality of loan portfolios due to the outbreak will have a significant impact on the ECL measurement.

3. Impact on insurers

Insurers are getting impacted in terms of their assets and liability reflected in the balance sheet. This, as a result, threatens their business continuity as well as future growth. The pandemic is an acid test for financial institutions and more so insurers as a stress that they have tested and scrutinized in their financial risk analysis, operational risk analysis and business continuity planning.

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Summary

Companies in the BFSI sector need to monitor the current and potential effects of COVID-19 on their businesses and financial reporting. Agility in providing reliable information through meaningful disclosures in the financial statements is important to maintain trust. The financial reporting issues with respect to credit risk assessment, going concern, liquidity, fair value, hedging strategies, loan covenants, mortality claims would need careful considerations.

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Related topics Financial accounting advisory services COVID-19
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