Bulgarian banks' 5-mo net profit up 12% y/y

The banking sector's net operating income came in at 3.2 billion levs at the end of May, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) said in a monthly report on the banking sector's performance last week. In January-May 2023, banks in Bulgaria booked a net operating income of 2.76 billion levs.

Net interest income jumped by an annual 22.2% to 2.3 billion levs, whereas net fee and commission income added 6.7% to 641 million levs.

The banks' total assets stood at 175.4 billion levs at the end of May, up 0.1% month-on-month. In the first five months of 2023, total assets amounted to some 161.8 billion levs.

Gross loans and advances in the review period totalled 114.7 billion levs, rising by 0.7% in monthly terms. The gross loan portfolio of the Bulgarian banking system totalled 102.6 billion levs at the end of May, compared to 90.3 billion levs a year earlier.

Compared to end-April, growth in loans to the general governments sector was the highest, at 8.5%, whereas loans to other financial corporations marked a 0.5% decline.

At the end of May, deposits in the banking system reached 149.6 billion levs, or 0.4% more than a month earlier.

The highest increase in deposits was posted by the general governments sector - at 1.1%, followed by households with 0.6% and non-financial corporations with 0.3%. Meanwhile, deposits of other financial corporations fell by 1.1%, while those of credit institutions slipped by 0.5%, data showed.

(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)