Citigroup’s brokerage arm placed RBL Bank on a 90-day positive catalyst watch after raising its target price to Rs 285 a share from Rs 230, implying about 19 percent upside from the private lender’s last close of Rs 238.71. The foreign broker reiterated its “buy” rating, saying recent balance-sheet actions position the bank for faster profitability gains than peers. Citi expects RBL’s return on assets to improve by 45–50 basis points as accelerated provisioning in the joint-liability group and credit-card portfolios reduces credit costs to roughly 2.2 percent. Slippages are forecast to ease to 4.5 percent in the June quarter from 4.7 percent three months earlier. While a shift toward secured lending and repricing of floating-rate loans could compress net interest margins by 28–30 basis points, Citi believes margins will bottom out during the current quarter, earlier than the sector average. RBL Bank shares rose almost 4 percent in early trading on 30 June after the report was circulated.