Bigbank increased its loan portfolio by 162 million euros in half a year and earned a net profit of 17 million euros

The unaudited second-quarter and six-month financial results of Bigbank that were published today show that in the first half of 2023 the bank’s loan portfolio increased by EUR 162 million, the deposit portfolio grew by EUR 231 million and the bank earned EUR 17 million in net profit.

According to Martin Länts, Chairman of the Management Board of Bigbank, despite the uncertain external environment and ongoing increase in interest rates, the financial results of Bigbank in the first six months and loan and deposit growth were at a very good level. “In the first half of 2023, the loan portfolio of Bigbank increased strongly in all product categories. Since we have been a trendsetter in the market as a payer of fair deposit interest, also our deposit volumes are increasing as expected,” said Martin Länts, commenting the results.

Martin Länts added that he is also grateful for the trust of all investors who in the second quarter participated in the private placement of notes qualifying as Additional Tier 1 (AT1) own funds of Bigbank, as a  result of which the bank raised EUR 3.39 million in additional capital.

The second quarter of 2023 was a milestone for Bigbank also because in May the bank moved to a new office in Tallinn. “The head office of Bigbank is now located in the same building as the Estonian National Library at Narva 11. A spacious and modern new office will create additional motivation for the employees in implementing the bank’s growth plans,” noted Martin Länts.

The net profit of Bigbank in the first six months was EUR 17 million, up from EUR 14.1 million in the first half of 2022. The growth totaled EUR 2.9 million (+21%). In the second quarter, Bigbank earned a profit of EUR 7.4 million, a year-on-year decrease of 4% (EUR 7.7 million).

Bigbank’s loan portfolio grew to a record EUR 1.5 billion by the end of June, having increased by EUR 89 million in a quarter (+6%) and by EUR 162 million in the first half (+12%). The portfolio of housing loans increased by EUR 23 million in a quarter (+9%) to EUR 269 million. The quarterly growth of the corporate loan portfolio was EUR 37 million (+7%) to EUR 550 million and the consumer loan portfolio increased by EUR 19 million (+3%) to EUR 693 million. Compared to the second quarter of 2022, the grow loan portfolio increased by EUR 390 million (+35%).

In corporate banking, the revenue from the sale of automotive and equipment lease grew especially rapidly in the first half. In the second quarter, the revenue from corporate lease was 59% higher than in the first quarter and was up by 71% in the first six months of 2023 year-on-year. In the second quarter, sales volume of corporate loans and leasing amounted to EUR 101 million, whereas the revenue of corporate loans was up by 83% in the first quarter. Notably, also the structure of the sale has changed. “While a year ago the majority of corporate loan sales concerned housing developments, this year the biggest contributors are production or warehousing space developed for own use and commercial real estate developments with long-term yield,” added the Bigbank CEO.

In addition to the success in the sale of corporate loans and leasing products, also housing loans are showing a positive trend. “Ongoing growth of Bigbank’s housing loan portfolio proves that many customers trust us with the financing of their home and shows that we are able to offer better loan terms than our competitors,” highlighted Länts.

In the second quarter, the quality of the loan portfolio remained good - at the end of the quarter, only 1.3% of loan receivables were more than 90 days overdue.

The Group’s deposit portfolio posted a quarterly growth of EUR 100 million (+7%). In six months the deposit portfolio grew by EUR 231 million (+17%) to EUR 1.6 billion. As compared to the first half of 2022, the Group’s deposit portfolio was up by a total of EUR 430 million (+37%). The portfolio of fixed-term deposits increased by EUR 136 million in the first half 2023 (+18%) to EUR 877 million. The savings portfolio increased by EUR 94 million (+15%) to EUR 721 million.