Yes Bank Ltd Forensic Report - SOIC x StockScans Report

as of Aug 2026

Yes Bank's record since the FY2020-21 rescue is one of unqualified audit opinions and a stabilised balance sheet, but the audit trail carries deep historical scars: a ₹8,415 crore AT-1 bond write-down still before the Supreme Court, a regulator-imposed Reconstruction Scheme that RBI has yet to formally lift, and reported profits repeatedly shaped by one-off gains and accounting choices.

Key findings

  1. AT-1 bond write-down still under Supreme Court challenge, with a potential writeback that could weaken capital Major - Yes Bank fully wrote down ₹8,415 crore of AT-1 bonds on March 14, 2020, a decision challenged by Axis Trustee Services and other bondholders. The Bombay High Court set aside the write-down on January 20, 2023; the Bank, RBI and the Central Government appealed to the Supreme Court, which extended a stay on March 3, 2023. Final arguments concluded on February 26, 2026, and the matter is reserved for judgement; the Bank estimates no material financial impact, but ICRA warns any writeback "could result in relative weakening of reported core capital cushions and solvency level".
  2. Bank still under RBI Reconstruction Scheme 2020, with a stayed SEBI penalty and an NCL order before the Supreme Court Major - The FY2025-26 Annual Report states the Bank remains under the YES BANK Limited Reconstruction Scheme 2020, pending RBI confirmation that it is out of the Scheme. SEBI imposed a ₹25 crore penalty on April 12, 2021 for alleged mis-selling of AT-1 bonds; SAT stayed it on May 18, 2021, and appeals were listed for final arguments on July 28, 2026. Separately, NSE Clearing imposed a ₹1.95 lakh penalty and directed reinstatement of ₹1.95 crore of client securities on May 3, 2021; the Supreme Court admitted the Bank's appeal on January 13, 2026, with the Bank undertaking not to utilise ₹7 crore of collateral until final adjudication.
  3. Reported borrowings mask far larger economic obligations, lien-marked deposits at roughly 9.8x total borrowings Major - Lien-marked deposits rose 20% to ₹635,150,313 thousand at March 31, 2026, roughly 9.8x the Bank's total reported borrowings of ₹64,863.57 crore. Securities pledged for clearing and margin requirements more than doubled to ₹68,241,300 thousand, and derivative MTM liabilities surged 146% to ₹201,584,708 thousand. Refinance borrowings of ₹362,341,359 thousand alone exceed the total borrowings figure by over 5.5x.
  4. Reported profits repeatedly shaped by one-off gains, ARC sales and accounting choices Major - In FY2026, the Bank transferred 31,659 stressed loans to ARCs, realising a profit of ₹50.53 crore; in FY2023, a larger ARC sale of ₹43,715.79 crore gross value realised ₹511.38 crore, with a ₹3,161.34 crore excess carried forward as provision rather than reversed to P&L. Q1 FY27 included a one-off ₹119 crore interest income on tax refunds, which the CFO confirmed sits in Non-Interest Income. The Bank carries a deferred tax asset of ₹6,584.37 crore as at March 31, 2026, and debited ₹39.33 crore from reserves for unamortised fraud provisions in FY2026.
  5. Unqualified opinions since FY2020-21, but the FY2019-20 qualified opinion and FY2020-21 fraud spike mark the trail's worst events Major - The FY2019-20 audit was qualified on two bases: the Bank breached minimum CET1 and Tier 1 capital ratios, and ongoing investigations prevented the auditor from commenting on consequential impact. That report also carried a Material Uncertainty Related to Going Concern paragraph citing a ₹16,418 crore loss, the moratorium, Board supersession and the AT-1 write-down. Fraud cases jumped to 383 amounting to ₹12,921.53 crore in FY2020-21 from 75 cases and ₹6,593.19 crore the prior year. Since then, opinions have been unqualified, with the FY2025-26 audit finding no tampering in the audit trail feature.
  6. Five audit firms in six years, with joint auditor G.M. Kapadia & Co. rotating out at the 22nd AGM Major - The statutory auditor has changed five times since FY2020, from B S R & Co. to M. P. Chitale & Co., then to joint auditor combinations involving Chokshi & Chokshi, G.M. Kapadia and C N K & Associates. G.M. Kapadia & Co. will cease as Joint Statutory Auditor at the conclusion of the 22nd AGM per RBI rotation guidelines, with MSKA & Associates LLP proposed for a 3-year term. Consolidated fees paid to statutory auditors rose from ₹4,04,43,116 in FY2020-21 to ₹4,09,85,092 in FY2024-25.
  7. Revenue quality shaped by ARC sale gains, COVID-era reversals and a restructured pool that slipped into NPA Major - ARC sales generated profits of ₹194.32 crore in FY2024 and ₹27.82 crore in FY2025, both credited to P&L. In FY2021, the Bank reversed ₹144.46 crore of 'interest on interest' per RBI's circular, and implemented COVID resolution plans for 4,152 accounts. As of June 30, 2026, the Standard Restructured Advances pool stood at ₹229 crore, with Gross NPA at ₹3,705 crore and Technical Write-Off at ₹6,412 crore.
  8. Related-party exposure dominated by SBI and SMBC, with approved limits of ₹25,000 crore and ₹25,200 crore Minor - Shareholders approved material related-party transaction limits of ₹25,000 crore with SBI and ₹25,200 crore with SMBC for FY2026-27, the latter representing 67.97% of consolidated turnover. SMBC became a related party on September 17, 2025, holding \~24.90% of paid-up capital. SBI limits escalated from ₹15,000 crore in FY2022-23 to ₹25,000 crore for FY2026-27.

What to watch

Bottom line: This is a disclosed and audited record with unqualified opinions for five straight years, but the capital trauma of FY2020 still casts a long shadow. The AT-1 write-down, the Reconstruction Scheme and the fraud spike are historical facts with live legal and regulatory consequences. The risk sits in the gap between reported borrowings and the far larger lien-marked and pledged obligations, and in a profit line that has repeatedly leaned on one-off gains. Watch the Supreme Court's AT-1 judgement and the pending RBI confirmation on the Scheme.