Good results from Sabadell despite the tax. In the first semester in which the entity paid 157 million euros of bank tax, Sabadell achieved a net profit of 564 million euros, 43.6% more than in the same period of 2022. The improvement in results was driven by the strong growth of the interest margin that shot up almost 30%.
That spread is the money the bank has left after it pays off the deposits and collects on the loans. It is the most typical banking activity that is driven -as is the case with the rest of the sector- by interest rates that revalue the bank’s credit portfolio by charging more for the same loans.
The CEO, César González-Bueno, explained today during the presentation of results from the corporate headquarters in Sant Cugat that for the year as a whole, the growth of the interest margin will be somewhat lower and will be above 20%.
The financial director, Leopoldo Alvear, has detailed that the lower growth is due to the fact that the repricing of the portfolio due to the rise in rates is going to be somewhat less and also “we are remunerating our clients and that will continue to rise”.
However, the lower growth in margins contrasts with an expected rise in profit growth. Alvear recalled that in the second part of the year there will not be the negative impacts that occurred in the first six months of the year when the bank tax was paid.
On the other hand, the improvement in margins contrasts with the decrease in commissions, which fell by 4.4%, to 697 million. There is also no growth in outstanding credit that closes the month of June 2023 with a balance of 153,834 million. It is 2.7% less year-on-year due to lower volumes in mortgages and companies, the entity explained in a statement.
Despite the rise in interest rates, the NPL ratio at the end of June fell to 3.50%, compared to 3.52% in the first quarter of 2023.
The other positive element for the bank is that TSB closed the first half of 2023 with a positive contribution to the group accounts of 106 million euros. The British subsidiary has ceased to be a drag on the bank for months and is now posting positive results quarter after quarter. The bank also reported an increase in the workforce by almost half a thousand people, up to 19,405.
