Philippines Savings Bank, the thrift bank arm of the Metrobank group, grew its first quarter net profit by 94 percent year-on-year to P546 million as hefty trading gains complemented an expansion in interest earnings.
“Our first quarter loan releases have exceeded our forecast. We are experiencing strong demand for loans with new mortgage loan releases growing by 32 percent versus the similar period last year. Given the strong first quarter results, we are raising our loan growth targets. Should this trend continue, we may exceed our net income target of P2.2 billion for the year,” PSBank president Pascual Garcia III said in a statement.
PSBank chief finance officer Perfecto Ramon Dimayuga Jr. said in a briefing that the bank generated P1.41 billion in net interest income in the first quarter, up by 4 percent from a year ago, as the bank expanded its earning assets.
Gross loans rose by 11 percent to P62.7 billion with both auto and mortgage loans posting double digit growths. Auto loans rose by 13 percent in spite of lingering supply issues due to the Thailand flooding last year. Mortgage portfolio increased by 10 percent.
PSBank originally projected a 10-percent growth in its loan book this year but Garcia said lending growth was turning out to be faster than expected.
The bank’s first-quarter earnings were also boosted by about P1.7 billion in trading gains, up by about 500 percent from a year ago. The reduction in interest rates by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas boosted the bank’s investment portfolio.
In the meantime, the thrift bank reported a P6.6-billion increase in deposits in the first quarter as it opened six additional branches which increased its branch network to 206. Doris C. Dumlao