NBS: Slovak Banking Sector Posted Profit of €634.6 mn at End of 11/2016

NBS: Slovak Banking Sector Posted Profit of €634.6 mn at End of 11/2016

Bratislava, January 5 (TASR) – Slovakia’s banking sector recorded profits of €634.6 million at the end of November, up by €39.8 million month-on-month and by €38.5 million year-on-year, the central bank (NBS) announced on Thursday.

Net interest incomes, which represent the main source of income for banks, reached €1.6 billion at the end of November, down by €75.6 million y-o-y. This was mainly due to low interest rates on the market.

According to a profit and loss statement provided by NBS, net fee and commission incomes increased on an annual basis. While they amounted to €475.4 million at the end of November 2015, they stood at €477.9 million at the end of November 2016.

NBS in its latest Financial Stability Report noted that the profitability of Slovak banks could go down in the next few years, even though it was reported that their total profits rose by 6 percent on the year in the first three quarters of 2016. If certain one-off effects had been removed, profits would even have been down by 8 percent y-o-y, NBS pointed out.

Developments are being driven mainly by a continuing fall in interest incomes, partly also due to recently introduced legislative measures concerning housing loans.

A significantly positive effect for the profitability of the sector last year was provided by Visa Inc’s acquisition of Visa Europe.