Interest rates are yet to bottom out and are unlikely to rise in the immediate future, according to a survey on Indian banking by Ficci.

The survey covered 216 entities, of which 57 per cent were banks and finance companies, while 43 per cent were from corporates and academia.

Sixty-six per cent of the respondents feel that rates have not yet bottomed out and any increase will impact banks' bottomlines.

Of the 25 per cent respondents, who believe that the rates have bottomed out and a rise is imminent, 90 per cent attribute this to an increased credit demand owing to an economic recovery.

A little more than half (52 per cent) of the respondents feel that some provisions of the Securitisation Act are too harsh and will kill the spirit of entrepreneurship if enforced in its present form.

Further, 75 per cent of the respondents have welcomed the finance minister's initiative to introduce Lenders' Liability Bill in Parliament.

They strongly feel the Bill will strike the right balance between the rights of the borrowers and lenders.

On the Reserve Bank of India move to tightening non-performing asset norms by shifting to a 90-day norm, 75 per cent respondents feel that it will increase the level of bad loans and put additional pressure on the already stressed banks.

Fifty-five per cent of the respondents say the corporate debt restructuring scheme has been successful and helped banks to reduce their NPAs.

On the engine of growth for the sector, 61 per cent of the respondents believe retail banking will drive the growth in the next one year followed by bancassurance and rural lendings.

An overwhelming 81 per cent of the respondents say under retail banking, home finance will see maximum growth this year.

As far as the performance of the overall sector is concerned, 71 per cent of the respondents attribute treasury and other income as the mainstay of banks' profitability, while 60 per cent cite operational efficiency as the main reason for the good performance.