PBB books lower Q2 income

PHILIPPINE BUSINESS Bank (PBB) booked a lower net income in the second quarter due to trading losses.

In a disclosure to the local bourse on Monday, the Yao-led lender said its net income stood at P166.9 million in the three months ended June, down by 7.9% from the P181.3 million logged in the same period last year.

Still, in the first six months of the year, PBB’s net profit grew 2.3% to P348.1 million from the P340.3 million tallied in the comparable yearago period.

“A significant portion came from the core business of interest income on loans and trading gains/losses from the sale of peso securities,” the bank said in its quarterly report.

PBB’s other income came in at P55.1 million in the quarter, dropping 52.9% from the P117 million booked a year earlier.

Broken down, the bank logged a P26.7million trading loss in the second quarter, a reversal from the P18.8 million in gains booked in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, service charges, fees and commissions grew 19.9% year-on-year to P30.1 million.

Net interest income was at P918.3 million, up 27.2% from P722.2 million last year. This was mainly driven by income on loans and other receivables which stood at P1.24 billion, up from last year’s P830.9 million.

PBB’s total loans and receivables amounted to P77.5 billion as of end-June, up 31.9% year-on-year.

On the funding side, total deposits climbed 29% to P79.1 billion as low-cost funds grew 19% to P30.2 billion. Time deposits likewise rose 36.1% to P48.9 billion.

From 2011 until end-June, the bank has opened 87 additional branches.

Rolando R. Avante, PBB president and chief executive offer, said the bank will “tactically expand” its branch network in the country to reach more clients.

The bank’s net interest margin improved to 4.12% from the previous year’s 4.06%, while its non-performing loan ratio “remained lower than industry” at 2.43%.

Overall, PBB’s total assets stood at P92.9 billion in June, growing by 26.1% year-on-year. Total equity also climbed 4.9% year-on-year to P10.5 billion.

Mr. Avante said PBB will continue to exercise prudence even as industry competition remains challenging amid rising inflation and continuous loan demand.

PBB was the fourth-largest thrift bank in the country in asset terms as of end-March, according to the latest central bank data.

Shares in PBB went down by 10 centavos or 0.84% to close at P11.80 each on Monday.