Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank) reached a record-high P23.6 billion in earnings in the first semester, up by 13 percent, as the Ty family-led bank intensified asset expansion while managing costs.
In a stock exchange filing on Thursday, Metrobank said net interest income in the January to June period had also gained 14.6 percent to P58 billion.
READ: Metrobank H1 earnings hit record P23.6B during first semester of 2024
Growth in the consumer and commercial segments caused a 15-percent uptick in gross loans.
In particular, auto loans rose by 16.6 percent, helping sustain the growth momentum in the consumer segment.
Its nonperforming loans ratio, a key indicator of asset quality as it counts the borrowers that are unable to pay loans, improved to 1.66 percent from 1.84 percent of total loan book in the same period last year.
13.3% ROE
At the same time, the bank said it was able to “contain” operating costs, which went up by 8.1 percent to P36.4 billion due to efforts to “beef up its capabilities.”
Its first half performance resulted in a return on equity (ROE) of 13.3 percent from 12.9 percent.
As of end-June, the country’s second largest private bank saw its total assets reach P3.3 trillion, up by 14.5 percent.
“Our strong capital position and robust asset profile continued to support our expanding core businesses despite market challenges,” Metrobank president Fabian Dee said in a statement.
“Prospects of easing inflation driven by government efforts could further spur consumer demand,” Dee added.
Total deposits increased by 7.8 percent to P2.4 trillion, 58 percent of which were from low-cost current and savings accounts. —With a report from Thony Rose F. Lesaca