These figures slightly exceeded analyst expectations.

Profit before impairment losses, meaning the depreciation of business assets in market value, for the same period were €22.9 million.

New lending figures for the first quarter of the year amounted to €166 million, an area which has been affected by the protracted coronavirus pandemic.

“The pandemic has always has a delayed and cumulative effect. So in the first quarter of 2021 we observed decreased demand for certain banking services, such as new loans,” said Hellenic Group General Manager Phivos Stasopoulos.

“Businesses now are more focused on survival, cutting losses, ensuring viability, and sorting out their relationship with their banks and push any on growth-related activities at a later time,” Stasopoulos added.

In terms of capital, the banks had CET1 ratio, which is calculated by looking at a bank’s core capital relative to its risk-weighted assets, of 20.20%, and a capital adequacy ratio, which is a measurement of a bank’s available capital expressed as a percentage of a bank’s risk-weighted credit, of 22.54%.

“With a solid capital adequacy ratio of 22.54% and strong liquidity (Liquidity Coverage Ratio of 480%), we are very well positioned and we are supporting our viable customers and financing the recovery of the economy,” said Stasopoulos in a statement.

In terms of Hellenic Bank’s loan portfolio quality, the bank stated that it continues to clean its portfolio up through “organic and non-organic” means.

The bank’s NPEs (non-performing exposures) to the gross loans ratio were 22.4%, while the figure of net loans to deposits ratio was 42.5%, with the latter reflecting a 0.5% drop year-on-year.

Source: Cyprus Mail