Sterling Bank reports P118-M profit

MANILA, Philippines—Sterling Bank of Asia grew its 2010 net profit by 33 percent to P118 million on higher interest income as well as earnings from investment securities, trading and foreign exchange.

In a press statement on Wednesday, the thrift bank also announced that it has earmarked P125 million to open five new branches within the first half of the year.

Sterling Bank, established by the Tiu family in 2007, reported that net interest income grew by 62 percent to P810 million last year. The resulting bottomline translated to a return on average equity of 10.4 percent from 8 percent in 2009.

Total resources rose by 35 percent to P23.63 billion as loans stood at P13.61 billion, up by 33 percent from a year ago. Deposit level also grew by 31 percent to P20.78 billion.

“This is a significant milestone for us and we attribute this to the expertise and prudence of the bank’s management team and support from our shareholders as well as the trust given to us by our valued clients.” Sterling Bank president and CEO Lamberto Villena said.

Meanwhile, four of the new branches to be put up by Sterling Bank will be located within Metro Manila and the other one in a key provincial city. This branch expansion initiative will bring Sterling Bank’s network to a total of 33 branches in just four years of operations.

“Sterling Bank is on an expansion mode and is constantly on the lookout for a worthy acquisition, in line with our plan to upgrade into a commercial bank,” Villena said.