Two of the largest banks reported solid net incomes in the first three quarters on the back of strong growth in loans and deposits.
BDO Unibank Inc., the country’s largest lender controlled by the Sy family, said Monday net income in the first nine months jumped 49.3 percent to a record P32.1 billion from P21.5 billion a year ago, driven by the expansion in recurring core revenues.
The nine-month profit nearly matched the full-year income of P32.7 billion in 2018.
The bank said in a statement the three-quarter net profit translated into a return on common equity of 12.5 percent, higher than 9.5 percent in the same period last year.
Customer loans increased 6 percent year-on-year to P2.1 trillion, led by the sustained growth in the middle-market and consumer segments.
Meanwhile, total deposits rose by 3 percent to P2.4 trillion, with low-cost current account/savings account or CASA deposits increasing by 6 percent and accounted for 72 percent of total deposits.
Net interest income increased to P88.5 billion, with net interest margins further improving in the third quarter.
Non-interest income climbed to P44.1 billion, led by fee-based income and insurance premiums which accelerated by 14 percent and 23 percent to P25.4 billion and P10.8 billion, respectively.
Meanwhile, state-run Land Bank of the Philippines, the fourth-largest lender in terms of assets, said net income in the first nine months surged23 percent to P13.97 billion from P11.36 billion a year ago.
LandBank said the nine-month net profit exceeded by 12 percent its target of P12.48 billion for the period.
Bank president and chief executive Cecilia Borromeo said the latest numbers convinced her that the bank was on track to meet its full-year income target of P16.64 billion.
The bank’s return on equity in the third quarter was at 13.41 percent while net interest margin stood at 3.41 percent.
Income from loans increased 50 percent on higher yield and growth in its loan portfolio. Gross loan portfolio grew to P869.31 billion as of end-September this year from P838.75 in the same period last year.
“We continue to grow LandBank’s financial position as the bank’s profitable operations allow us to consistently drive support for our priority sectors, especially farmers and fishers,” Borromeo said.
Total assets also grew by 11 percent to P1.96 trillion from P1.77 trillion as of September last year, driven by growth in loans and investments.
Deposits expanded by 11 percent to P1.74 trillion from P1.57 trillion, while capital grew by 16 percent to P144.87 billion from P124.88 billion.