Izola Bank interim pre-tax profit up seven per cent

Izola Bank plc has reported an interim pre-tax profit to June 30 of €1,260,379, up seven per cent on the same period last year.

The bank attributed the result to higher yielding investments. Net interest income of €964,200 for the six months was up €104,588 (12.2 per cent) compared with June 30 last year. Net fee and commission income of €878,568 was down €75,294 or 7.9 per cent, compared with the first half of last year, a result of a decrease in the discount charge to reflect current market conditions.

Operating income increased by €34,806 to reach €1,860,156 for the six months to June 30.

Loans and advances to customers amounted to €19 million at June 30 and described to be in line with the balance of loans and advances at the end of December 2011. The quality of the lending portfolio showed no signs of deterioration while liquidity and capital ratios remained substantially above regulatory requirements.

Customer deposits at €53.01 million were down €1.6 million on December 31, 2011.

Total assets of €93.24 million at June 39, rose by €3.4 million, or 3.8 per cent, compared with December 31, 2011. Earnings per share of 2.02 per cent for the six months ended June 30 compared to 1.93 per cent in the first half of 2011. The decrease in the bank’s cost-to-income ratio by 4.1 per cent to 32.2 per cent was due to higher operating income and a decrease in administration expenses. The comparative figure for administration expenses in 2011 included a one-off marketing expense.

Valletta-based Izola Bank is a fully-owned subsidiary of the Van Marcke trading and manufacturing group of Belgium.