BoC sees its profits grow in Q1 2022
Bank of Cyprus group on Thursday announced a net profit of 21 million euros for the first quarter of 2022, compared to a net profit of €8 million in the first quarter of 2021.
At the same time, it announced a record €618 million of new loans and a further reduction of nonperforming exposures (NPE), marking the third consecutive quarter of accelerating loan growth.
The bank balance sheet normalization continued in the first quarter with a further €100 million of organic NPE reduction, thus reducing the NPE ratio to 6.5%, pro forma for NPE sales. The bank remains on track to achieve the target for an NPE ratio of 5% by the end of this year and less than 3% by the end of 2025. It also announced a 2% increase in its loan portfolio.
As the group’s Chief Executive Panicos Nicolaou told a press conference, “new lending reached higher levels than the equivalent period pre-pandemic, whilst maintaining strict lending criteria.”
As of March 31, the bank’s total capital ratio was 20.3% and its CET1 ratio was 15.2%, on both a transitional and pro forma basis. Its liquidity position also remained strong and it continued to operate with over €6 billion in surplus liquidity.
