“Swedbank’s Profit Soars in Latvia: Q1 2023 Results and Analysis”

The profit of “Swedbank” in Latvia in the first quarter of this year was 61 million euros, which is 39 million euros more than in the corresponding period of 2022, reports the head of media relations of the bank, Jānis Krops.

He points out that the profit has increased because the bank’s income has increased, although the bank’s expenses have also increased during this period.

At the same time, the financial report published on the bank’s website shows that in the first quarter of 2023, the profit of the “Swedbank” group in Latvia was 57.216 million euros, which is 3.2 times more than in the first quarter of 2022, while the profit of “Swedbank” itself has increased by 2.7 times and was 61.691 million euros.

The assets of the “Swedbank” group at the end of March 2023 were 8.569 billion euros, which is 0.7% or 55.415 million euros more than at the end of 2022, when the assets of the bank group were 8.514 billion euros.

Krops states that the net interest income in the first quarter of 2023 has increased by 52 million compared to the first quarter of last year, while the net commission income has increased by two million euros.

At the same time, the bank’s total expenses in the first quarter of this year amounted to 31 million euros, as opposed to 26 million euros in the first quarter of last year.

On the other hand, the loan reserves in this period amounted to 1.1 million euros, while there were none in the relevant period last year.

According to Kropp, the amount of the bank’s loan portfolio has increased by 9%, including the amount of lending to households has increased by 7%, while the loan portfolio of companies has increased by 12%. At the same time, compared to the same period last year, deposits have increased by 9%, including household deposits by 6%, while corporate deposits – by 14%.

“Despite the global challenges in the financial markets and the economy in general, Swedbank’s position is stable,” notes Lauris Mencis, chairman of the board of Latvian Swedbank.

He also indicates that the bank will continue its work on promoting lending.

Mencis also informs that it is planned to open a regional office of the bank in Liepāja soon.

According to the bank, “Swedbank” has raised interest rates on time deposits several times in the first quarter of this year. Consequently, interest in deposit options has grown significantly this quarter – the amount of time deposits has more than doubled.

“Swedbank” representatives also note that the first quarter of 2023 marked the renewal of customer interest in home lending, although the availability of homes has decreased during the quarter. Both the increase in housing prices and their limited supply make it difficult to purchase new housing. At the same time, in the field of corporate lending, the growth of the credit portfolio was mainly promoted by energy, processing industry, agriculture and real estate management and development companies.

In the first quarter of 2022, “Swedbank” group Latvia worked with a profit of 18.14 million euros, while the profit of “Swedbank” itself was 23.246 million euros.

Swedbank is the largest bank in Latvia in terms of assets.