Outside trading hours - Regulated information*
Net interest income increased by 4% quarter-on-quarter and by 17% year-on-year (1% quarter-on-quarter and 14% year-on-year when recently consolidated Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria is excluded). The net interest margin for the quarter under review amounted to 1.90%, down 1 basis point quarter-on-quarter but up 10 basis points on the year-earlier quarter. Loan volumes continued to increase, going up by 2% quarter-on-quarter and 9% year-on-year. Deposits excluding debt certificates fell by 2% quarter-on-quarter but increased by 6% year-on-year. These volume growth figures were calculated on an organic basis (excluding the changes in the scope of consolidation and forex effects).
Technical income from our non-life insurance activities (premiums less charges, plus the ceded reinsurance result) was up 4% on the level recorded in the previous quarter and 33% on the year-earlier quarter. The year-on-year increase was related to higher premium income and lower technical charges, partially offset by a lower ceded reinsurance result. The combined ratio for the first nine months of 2022 amounted to an excellent 86%. Sales of our life insurance products were down 8% and 15% on the level recorded in the previous and year-earlier quarters, respectively.
Outside trading hours - Regulated information*
Net interest income increased by 4% quarter-on-quarter and by 17% year-on-year (1% quarter-on-quarter and 14% year-on-year when recently consolidated Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria is excluded). The net interest margin for the quarter under review amounted to 1.90%, down 1 basis point quarter-on-quarter but up 10 basis points on the year-earlier quarter. Loan volumes continued to increase, going up by 2% quarter-on-quarter and 9% year-on-year. Deposits excluding debt certificates fell by 2% quarter-on-quarter but increased by 6% year-on-year. These volume growth figures were calculated on an organic basis (excluding the changes in the scope of consolidation and forex effects).
Technical income from our non-life insurance activities (premiums less charges, plus the ceded reinsurance result) was up 4% on the level recorded in the previous quarter and 33% on the year-earlier quarter. The year-on-year increase was related to higher premium income and lower technical charges, partially offset by a lower ceded reinsurance result. The combined ratio for the first nine months of 2022 amounted to an excellent 86%. Sales of our life insurance products were down 8% and 15% on the level recorded in the previous and year-earlier quarters, respectively.
Costs excluding bank taxes were up 7% on their level in the previous quarter and 4% on their year-earlier level. Excluding recently consolidated Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria, costs excluding bank taxes were up 4% quarter-on-quarter and 2% year-on-year. The cost/income ratio for the first nine months of 2022 amounted to 54%. In that calculation, certain non-operating items have been excluded and bank taxes spread evenly throughout the year. Excluding all bank taxes, the cost/income ratio amounted to 48%.
The quarter under review included a 79-million-euro net loan loss impairment charge, compared to a net charge of 9 million euros in the previous quarter, and a net release of 66 million euros in the year-earlier quarter. The net charge in the quarter under review included a 24-million-euro net release for the loan book, which was more than offset by a 103-million-euro increase in the reserve for geopolitical and emerging risks. As a consequence, the credit cost ratio for the first nine months of 2022 amounted to 0.05%, compared to -0.18% for full-year 2021 (a negative sign implies a positive impact on the results).
Our liquidity position remained strong, with an LCR of 155% and NSFR of 140%. Our capital base remained robust, with a fully loaded common equity ratio of 15.0%.
Johan Thijs, Chief Executive Officer
‘Almost nine months have now passed since Russia invaded Ukraine and, unfortunately, there is no sign of an end to the war. The tragedy in Ukraine is causing immense human suffering and our heartfelt solidarity goes out to all victims of this conflict. We sincerely hope that a respectful, peaceful and lasting solution can be achieved as soon as possible. The war in Ukraine, alongside other geopolitical uncertainties, is also sending shockwaves throughout the global economy, resulting in high inflation and weighing on economic growth. Given those uncertainties, we have further increased our dedicated reserve for geopolitical and emerging risks, bringing it close to 0.4 billion euros at the end of the quarter under review.
The tragedy unfolding in Ukraine comes on top of other pressing issues such as the climate crisis, as evidenced by the extreme weather events of the past year. In that respect, sustainability and ESG in general also remain high on our agenda. In August, for example, we became the first Belgian financial institution to issue a social bond, for an amount of 750 million euros. The money raised will be used for investments in the health care sector. What’s more, having already achieved or even surpassed almost all our previously set sustainability objectives ahead of schedule, we have – in accordance with our climate commitments – now set new climate-related targets for a number of key sectors and activities. You can read all about them in our first ever Climate Report on www.kbc.com |
