Bulgarian banks' 4-mo net profit rises 17% y/y

The banking sector's net operating income came in at roughly 2.58 billion levs at the end of April, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) said in a monthly report on the banking sector's performance. In January-April 2023, banks in Bulgaria generated a net operating income of some 2.19 billion levs.

Gross interest income of banks in Bulgaria went up to some 2.22 billion levs in the four months through April from 1.78 billion levs in the prior-year period. At the same time, gross fee and commission income increased to 648.3 million levs from 596.1 million levs.

The banks' total assets stood at 175.1 billion levs at the end of April, up 0.7% month-on-month. In the first four months of 2023, total assets amounted to some 159.9 billion levs.

Gross loans and advances in the review period totalled 113.9 billion levs, slipping by 0.2% in monthly terms. The gross loan portfolio of the Bulgarian banking system totalled 101.6 billion levs at the end of April, compared to 89.2 billion levs a year earlier.

Compared to end-March, growth in loans to other financial corporations was the highest, at 2.9%, whereas loans to the general governments sector marked a 1.7% decline.

At the end of April, deposits in the banking system reached 148.9 billion levs, or 0.7% less than a month earlier.

The highest decline in deposits was posted by other financial corporations - at 16.9%, followed by credit institutions with 14.6%. Meanwhile, deposits of non-financial corporations grew by 1.2%, while those of households added 0.9%, data showed.

(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)