EastWest Bank (EW) said Thursday its net income grew 32 percent in 2023 to P6.1 billion from a year ago on the back of sustained consumer loan growth and strong deposit generation.
Return on equity (ROE) stood at 9.5 percent, the bank said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.
Net revenues increased 26 percent to P35.7 billion, led by its consumer lending portfolio, which grew by 25 percent.
“We witnessed significant growth in our major assets, our consumer loans portfolio. This translated to a remarkable jump in our net income as we doubled down on our strength in consumer lending. We reversed our 2 years of continuous decline and resumed our quest to be one of the top consumer banks in the country,” said EW president Jackie Fernandez.
EW’s consumer lending portfolio accounted for 80 percent of total loans, the highest proportion among its peer banks.
This was supported by stable funding sources as total deposits grew by 8 percent to P356.5 billion, accounted for mainly by CASA (current account saving account) deposits which increase 12 percent or P31.5 billion to P292.4 billion.
The bank attributed the increase in CASA to renewed focus on cash management services, specifically geared towards the micro, small and medium enterprises sector. This allowed the bank to sustain its net interest margin of 7.6 percent.
“We entered 2024 with good momentum, but much work still needs to be done in growing and improving the bank. We need to rise further, face the challenges and potential headwinds. Our goal is clear, to become one of the top consumer banks in the Philippines,” said EW chief executive Jerry Ngo.
Non-interest income grew by 51 percent to P7.4 billion. Fees and commission increased by 26 percent to P4.8 billion as banking transactions grew in line with lending growth.
Trading income also contributed P993.6 million to non-interest income growth, increasing more than five times from 2022.
Total assets as of end-2023 reached P464.2 billion, up by 10 percent from 2022, while total loans and receivables grew 15 percent to P296.6 billion, as the bank benefited from the strong demand for consumer loans.
Total deposits grew 8 percent to P356.5 billion. Capital adequacy ratios was healthy at 13.8 percent, while common equity tier 1 (CET1) ratio was at 13.0 percent, still above the regulatory requirements.