Raiffeisen Bank Romania ended the first half of the year with a net profit of EUR 60 million, up 20 percent over the same period last year, according to the bank. In H1 2012, the bank’s net profit was EUR 50 million.

The bank’s total assets slightly decreased from EUR 5.64 billion in the first six months in 2012, to EUR 5.59 billion in H1 2013, while total loans increased 6 percent year-on-year, to EUR 3.6 billion. The bank’s deposits also went up 8 percent in the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2012, while the loans to deposits ratio currently stands at 89 percent, against 91 percent in June 2012.

“We ended the first semester of 2013 with a very good result, taking into consideration that the economic environment is recovering, although very slowly. […] For the second half of the year, we will continue to exert a strict control on costs and risks, improve processes and operations where we can and consolidate the relationship with our 2 million customers”, said Steven van Groningen, President  and CEO of Raiffeisen Bank.

The bank’s net provisioning for impairment losses decreased slightly to EUR 36 million, compared to EUR 38 million at the end of the first semester in 2012, while the NPL ratio remained relatively constant to 8 percent.

Raiffeisen Bank’s customer base in Romania remained constant this year, at around 2 million customers, 100,000 SMEs and 7,500 companies. The bank’s network comprised 525 units in the first half of the year, down from 539 in the same period last year. The number of employees also decreased from 5,707 at the end of June 2012, to 5,116 this year.

Raiffeisen Bank International ended the first half of the year with a consolidated profit of EUR 277 million, a year-on-year decrease of 60 percent.

Vienna-based Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) owns 99.49 percent of Raiffeisen Bank Romania’s shares. The group regards Austria and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as its home market. In CEE, RBI operates an extensive network of subsidiary banks, leasing companies and a range of other specialized financial service providers in 17 markets.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com