The Bank of Valletta Group has recorded a profit before taxation of €49.1 million for the six months ended March 31 and declared a gross interim dividend of 6c per cent, an increase of eight per cent on last year's interim dividend of 5c55 per share.
This dividend will be paid on May 24 to shareholders on the bank's register of members at the close of business on May 10.
This compares with pre-tax profits of €45.2 million earned in the first six months of the previous financial year.
The Net Operating Profit before fair value movements for the period is in line with the results for the same period of the previous year. Fair value movements for the period show a small gain of €0.5 million compared with a charge of €5.6 million recorded in the first half of the previous year.
The share of profits from insurance interests amount to €1.6 million, compared with €3.8 million for the same period last year - reflecting the difficult investment conditions that prevailed in the second half of calendar 2011.
The bank's total assets as at March 31 stood at €6.7 billion (September 30, 2011: €6.6 billion), while equity attributable to bank shareholders of the Bank amounted to €488.8 million (€473.2 million). Loans and Advances, net of impairment allowances, stood at €3.69 billion, an increase of €87 million from the position as at September 2011, reflecting the subdued demand for credit experienced during the period.
Non Performing Loans (NPL) ratio improved, with NPLs at March 31 amounting to 4.1% of Gross Advances (5.1%).
The bank said that customer deposits, standing at €5.62 billion were up €94 million since the September 30, with modest growth being experienced in both the retail and institutional sectors.
Overall, deposits increased by €434 million or 8.4% since March 31.
The bank's liquidity ratio remained strong at 49%, with minimal use being made of inter-bank funding.
At 68.7%, the loans to deposit ratio changed little from September 2011.
As at March 31, core Tier I Capital stood at 10.8% (10.5%), whilst total overall capital ratio position was a 15.4% (14.9%).
Return on equity for the period was 20.4%.
Outlook
During the second half of this year, the bank said, the mood is one of heightened caution.
ECB initiatives served to bring relief and calm to the markets – but these provided a temporary palliative rather than a permanent solution to the challenges being faced by the eurozone.
Longer lasting solutions would require fiscal and structural reform, and the implementation of such measures would be painful and difficult in an environment where a number of seemingly contrary and incompatible imperatives were at play – including encouraging banks to expand the availability of credit whilst demanding higher capital ratios, and the urgent need to stimulate economic growth to arrest a potentially socially destabilising rise in unemployment, against a backdrop of calls for austerity, fiscal pacts and "golden rule" limitations on debt and deficit.