Deposits in Maltese banks were up by almost 10 per cent last year, standing at €16.8 billion, according to a report by the European Central Bank.

The ECB publication, EU Report On Banking Structures, gives an overview of the financial institutions in the 27 member states.

The financial sector managed €41.2 billion in assets, which represented a drop from the €42.3 billion in 2008.

While assets managed by insurance corporations went up to €1.6 billion from €1.4 billion in 2008, assets managed by investment funds dropped to €6.5 billion from €8.2 billion a year earlier.

According to the report, Malta had 24 credit institutions that employed 3,834 people in 2009, a drop of 72 employees when compared to the previous year.

The report shows that the value of home loans issued by credit institutions in 2009 went up to €2.5 billion from €2.2 billion, while consumer credit totalled €375 million, an increase from the €330 million in 2008.

The banks’ loan books, however, dropped to €21.3 billion from €25 billion.