By Jenniffer B. Austria
Philippine National Bank (PNB), the banking arm of tycoon Lucio Tan, said Thursday it booked a net income of P5.3 billion in the first quarter of 2024, up by 10 percent from the same period last year.
PNB said in a stock exchange filing first-quarter core income also grew 7 percent to P12.9 billion, with net interest margin rising 12 percent year-on-year to P11.7 billion.
The bank attributed the positive first-quarter performance to higher loan portfolio and better yields which improved by an average of 47 basis points.
It also managed to mitigate the effect of higher cost of deposits and increase in deposit volume by reducing its high-cost funding.
“This year is exciting for the bank as we embark on expanding our reach to the small- and medium-enterprises as well as in consumer lending,” said PNB executive vice president and chief financial officer Francis Albalate.
“We shall strengthen our relationships with our local businesses and retail customers by providing relevant services that will help them fulfill their financial objectives,” he said.
Other income declined to P1.2 billion from P3.4 billion in the first quarter of 2023 mainly due to the substantial ROPA (real and other properties owned or acquired) sale recognized by the bank a year ago.
Operating expenses went down by 8 percent to P7.3 billion.
Provision for impairment losses stood at P620 million, down 62 percent from a year ago, as the bank’s loan portfolio fully recovered from the lingering effects of the pandemic as the economy maintains its growth trajectory to pre-pandemic level.
PNB ended March with total assets of P1.196 trillion, slightly lower than the Dec. 31, 2023 level.
Net loans and receivables remained stable at P610 billion and deposit liabilities at P916.4 billion.
PNB was awarded by Euromoney as the Best Bank for Investment Research in the Philippines during its Private Banking Awards on March 22. It was also ranked first in the Philippines in Forbes’ list of World’s Best Banks for 2024.
“We are truly grateful for the continued trust and confidence of our customers. This recognition validates that we are on track in pursuing our vision of being among the top banks in terms of customer growth and satisfaction,” said PNB president Florido Casuela.