Philippine National Bank (PNB) posted net income of P11.4 billion for the first nine months of 2022, registering an increase by P289 million from the first half net results, buoyed by stronger net interest margins for the third quarter of the year.
The bank’s nine-month net interest income increased by 4 percent year-on-year, driven by a 21 percent growth in interest income earned from its investment portfolio and other liquid placements, in the midst of the current rising interest rate environment, resulting in an improved net interest margin of 3.4 percent from 3.3 percent a year ago.
Earlier this year, the bank reported a P3.6 billion gain earned from the sale of an investment property during the second quarter, which further boosted the year-to-date net operating results of the Bank.
The nine-month net income is lower compared to the P26.4 billion reported for the same period last year, largely due to the one-off P33.6 billion gain from the property-for-shares swap transaction implemented in 2021. Without the effect of this one-off transaction, the operating income of the bank showed growth of 14 percent year-on-year.
The bank’s gross loan portfolio expanded to P638.3 billion as of end-September 2022, slightly up by 1 percent from the loan level last year as the Bank further stretched its lending to large corporates during the period. Provisions set up on these loans are 97 percent lower than the amounts provided in the same period last year when the Bank was still continuing to build its loan loss reserves, particularly on accounts impacted by the pandemic.
