Biggest Romanian lender sees higher net profit

BCR, Romania’s biggest bank, posted a net profit of RON 1.04 billion (EUR 233 million) in 2016, up by 14.5% compared to 2015. The operating result stood at RON 1.3 billion (EUR 289 million), 16.9% lower than the previous year, driven by lower operating income coupled with higher investment, mainly in IT infrastructure, according to a BCR press release. The higher net profit came mainly from a provision release worth RON 280 million (EUR 62 million) as a result of non-performing loan resolution and recoveries coupled with improved portfolio quality. The bank granted new loans worth RON 8.8 billion (almost EUR 2 billion) in 2016. However, its net loan portfolio was slightly lower at the end of December 2016 compared to December 2015, at RON 32.3 billion (EUR 7.18 billion) as the bank continued to clean up its portfolio last year. “The NPL ratio went down to at 11.8%, as of December 31, 2016, significantly decreased versus 20.2% in December 2015, despite overall reduction of the loan book, determined by recoveries, sales of selected NPL portfolios and write-offs,” according to BCR. The bank’s total assets went up by 8.3%, to RON 67.5 billion (EUR 15 billion), supported by higher deposits from customers. Three in four banks in Romania were profitable in 2016 editor@romania-insider.com