Bank of Cyprus first-half profit in line with targets
The Bank of Cyprus reported an expected 6 percent rise in first-half net profit on strong loan growth in Cyprus and Greece and said its three-year plan is on track. The bank, the biggest lender in Cyprus with extensive operations in Greece, said net profits reached 244 million euros. Analysts were expecting the figure to rise to 244.7 million euros. «Strong credit expansion continued in Cyprus, Greece and the new markets, resulting in a significant annual increase in the group’s loan portfolio by 28 percent,» the bank said. Net interest income rose 6 percent to 383 million euros, while the group’s net interest margin shrank to 2.57 percent from 2.91 percent in the same period a year earlier. Earnings figures released by the bank, the first local lender to report first-half figures, is likely to provide relief to investors waiting to see what kind of impact the slowing economy, a drop off in mortgage loan growth and a falling stock market will have on bottom line figures. «This performance is in line with the targets of the group’s three-year strategic plan for 2008-2010,» the bank said. As part of plans to expand abroad, Bank of Cyprus recently signed a deal to buy an 80 percent stake in Russia’s Uniastrum Bank for 371 million euros, the country’s ninth-largest lender. Bank stocks traded on the Athens bourse have taken a beating, losing 30 percent in the last 12 months on concerns that the global economic slowdown will harm loan growth in Greece and the broader region. [email protected]
