Bulgaria's Corpbank Raises Jan-Sept Net Profit 64%

The lender had planned to book a net profit of 28.6 million levs for the nine-month period.

The bank expanded its credit portfolio by 55% year-on-year to 1.05 billion levs at the end of September, Corpbank said in a filing with the Bulgarian Stock Exchange's information service X3 News.

The bank's deposit portfolio totalled 1.6 billion levs at the end of September, up 30% on the year.

Taking into account the results for the first nine months and the trend for sustained growth in the previous years, the management of the bank considers that the targets for 2008 are fully achievable, the bank said.

Corpbank has said it expects to post a net profit of 39.2 million lev this year, up from 23.3 million levs in 2007.

Shares of Corpbank, part of the  blue-chip SOFIX index of the Sofia bourse, closed 1.35% lower at 73 levs on Monday.

(1 euro = 1.95583 Bulgarian levs)