Romanian lender BCR, part of Austrian group Erste Bank Group, announced a net profit of RON 428 million (EUR 89.3 mln) in the first quarter of the year (Q1), up 60% compared to the same period of the previous year.

It says that the performance was due to the higher operating result and the positive impact of significant recoveries from non-performing customers.

Net interest income increased by 9.4% to RON 598 mln (EUR 125 mln), driven by higher volumes of loans both on the retail and corporate customers segment, the bank said.

The non-performing loans (NPL) rate reached 3.7% in March 2020, the lowest level in the last 12 years, down from 4.1% in December 2019.

The stock of loans in BCR's portfolio increased by 1.4% from the end of last year to RON 40.6 bln (EUR 8.4 bln) at the end of March supported by both retail loans (+1.8% compared to December 2019) and corporate loans (+1.2% compared to December 2019). Deposits from customers increased slightly by 2.0% to RON 58.9 bln (EUR 12.2 bln), driven by the increase in retail deposits (+2.1% compared to December 2019).

"The society and the business environment have changed dramatically in the last months, but we have managed to adapt rapidly to the new reality," said BCR CEO Sergiu Manea.

"We know the concerns of our customers: uncertainty, business loss, job losses, employees' health, and we are prepared to save as many jobs as possible. We are strong. The strategy implemented in the past years, which included fast digitization and caution in risk assessment, proves its validity. We have an important role in restarting the economy, and we are ready to assume it," he added.

editor@romania-insider.com

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