MUMBAI, April 18 (Reuters) - India's HDFC Bank reported a stronger-than-expected rise in fourth-quarter profit on Saturday, helped by a pick-up in lending to consumers, though lending margins remained weak.

India's largest private lender is reporting its first quarterly results since its chairman resigned citing differences over "values and ethics". It is conducting a legal review of the incident and will provide a summary in due course, Chief Executive Sashidhar Jagdishan said on a post-earnings call.

HDFC Bank has hired two domestic law firms and one U.S.-based law firm to review the resignation letter from former part-time chairman Atanu ?Chakraborty, Reuters reported last month, citing sources.

The bank posted a standalone net profit of 192.2 billion Indian rupees ($2.08 billion) for the quarter ended March 31, compared with 176.16 billion rupees a year earlier and just above analysts' estimate of 191.16 billion rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Loan demand in India gained momentum in the second half of the fiscal year ended in March as easing inflation and lower taxes supported household spending and corporate borrowing.

HDFC Bank's advances rose 12% in the quarter from a year earlier, driven mainly by retail loans including mortgages and personal debt. Total deposits rose 14.4%.

Jagdishan did not provide a loan growth forecast for the 2026-27 financial year, citing geopolitical uncertainties.

"I'm being very conscious of staying away from getting a certain number to you all. But ... we are on the right track," he said.

The bank's management said earlier this year that loan growth would exceed the industry average.

Net interest income - the difference between interest earned on loans and interest paid on deposits - rose 3.2% to 330.8 billion rupees.

Net interest margin was stable at 3.38% but remained below the 4% level seen before the bank merged with parent HDFC Ltd in 2023.

Gross non-performing loans as a share of total loans eased to 1.15% at end-March from 1.24% in the previous quarter.

Income from treasury operations fell 13.6% quarter on quarter to 19.25 billion rupees as rising bond yields and central bank curbs on foreign exchange options weighed on banks.

($1 = 92.5980 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashwin Manikandan. Editing by Louise Heavens and Mark Potter)

By Ashwin Manikandan