State-owned Central Bank of India has posted a 32 per cent jump in profit at Rs 1,263 crore in the third quarter ended December 2025, aided by improvement in bad loans. The Mumbai-based bank had earned a net profit of Rs 959 crore in the same quarter a year ago. Total income increased to Rs 10,969 crore during the quarter under review against Rs 9,739 crore in the same period of last year, Central Bank of India said in a regulatory filing. The bank's interest income also rose to Rs 9,033 crore during the quarter, up from Rs 8,509 crore in the same period a year ago. However, the Net Interest Income (NII) marginally declined to Rs 3,502 crore, from Rs 3,540 crore of the corresponding period of the previous year. Similarly, the net interest margin (NIM) eased to 2.96 per cent, compared to 3.45 per cent at the end of the third quarter of the previous financial year. The bank's operating profit improved to Rs 2,293 crore, up from Rs 1,963 crore in December 2024. As regards asset qua