Metrobank H1 2023 profit jumps 34%

MANILA  -The Ty family’s flagship banking arm Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. said net income in the first semester of 2023 surged on higher loans and profit margins.

Earnings from January to June jumped 34.1 percent to nearly P21 billion as net interest income reached P50.6 billion, up 27 percent over the same period in 2022, Metrobank said in a statement on Wednesday.

This pushed up the banking giant’s return on equity to 12.9 percent versus 10 percent that was booked last year.

“Our core businesses continued to grow and benefit from our strong balance sheet,” Metrobank President Fabian S. Dee said in the statement.

“As the economy further expands, we see more market opportunities that will keep our upward momentum and sustain our efforts to better serve our customers,” he added.

For the second quarter alone, Metrobank said net income reached P10.4 billion, up 37.1 percent.

In the first half of the year, gross loans climbed 8.6 percent year-on-year, driven by a 7.2-percent rise in commercial loans and 14.1-percent expansion in consumer loans.

Total deposits grew by 9.3 percent year-on-year  to P2.3 trillion. Trading and foreign exchange gains stood at P3.1 billion while fee income rose by 10.2 percent to P8.1 billion.