July 31 (SeeNews) - The combined net profit of the banks operating in Bulgaria increased to 917.9 million levs ($443.7 million/389.8 million euro) in the first six months of 2019 from 801.0 million levs in the same period a year earlier, the country's central bank said on Wednesday.
The banking sector's net operating revenue expanded to 2.13 billion levs in the first half of the year, from 2.00 billion levs in the comparable period of 2018, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) said in a regular report on the performance of the country's banks.
Gross interest income of Bulgarian banks edged up to 1.52 billion levs in the January-June period of 2019 from 1.50 million levs in the like period of last year.
Gross fee and commission income rose to 645.9 million levs in the period under review from 601.0 million levs a year earlier.
The banks' total assets increased to 108.58 billion levs at the end of June, from 100.13 billion levs a year earlier.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)