Metrobank Q1 profit grows by 31%

MANILA  -The Ty family-led Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank) delivered “solid” profit growth of more than  31 percent to P10.5 billion during the first three months of the year.

The country’s second-largest lender is the latest major bank to report strong quarterly earnings, which were partly propelled by gross loans of P1.46 trillion, up 12.5 percent.

Asset quality also improved as its non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio eased to 1.8 percent from 2.2 percent during the same period last year despite broader concerns over elevated domestic inflation and risks from a global recession. Metrobank’s NPL coverage rose to 189.2 percent by the end of March.

“Metrobank’s solid performance in the first three months of the year reflects our continued efforts to capture opportunities of a growing economy while we strive to keep our balance sheet strong against risks of volatile market conditions,” Metrobank president Fabian S. Dee said in a statement on Friday.

The company’s financial performance during the quarter translated to a 13.1-percent return on equity, which was higher than the 10.3 percent recorded in the same period last year.

“For the rest of the year, we will continue making progress in further improving our products and services and implement strategies in line with our promise of keeping our customer in good hands,” Dee said.

Gains mainly came from a nearly 29-percent surge in net interest income to P24.9 billion, bringing up its net interest margin to 3.9 percent, an increase of 54 basis points.

Loans were also driven by commercial and consumer borrowings, up 12.7 percent and 11.8 percent, respectively.

“Our consumer loans business was mainly driven by a 30-percent growth in net credit card receivables and 10.7 percent rise in auto loans,” Metrobank said.

Trading and foreign exchange gains stood at P2.1 billion while fee income added 13.4 percent to P4.1 billion.

Meanwhile, operating expenses climbed 13.5 percent to P16.9 billion on higher taxes, technology upgrades and other transaction-related costs. Cost-to-income ratio eased to 51.6 percent from 54.1 percent from the year before.

Total deposits rose 10.8 percent to P2.3 trillion from a year ago. The bulk of the figure, or about 62 percent, was from current and savings account deposits.

Metrobank ended the period with consolidated assets of P2.9 trillion while total equity stood at P320 billion.

Its capital adequacy ratio stood at at 17.6 percent while and common equity tier 1 ratio stood at 16.8 percent, well above regulatory requirements.