The Valiant banking group started the 2022 financial year on solid foundations, generating growth in its core business, interest operations, but also in the investment activity. Despite a marked increase in expenses, profitability has improved.
In the first quarter, revenues increased by 6.0% year on year, to 107.7 million francs. Interest-bearing transactions generated gross profit of 85.7 million (+2.9%). Taking into account new provisions for credit default risk of 3.2 million, the net result of this activity shows an increase of 3.5% to 82.5 million.
The management business really boosted revenue growth, thanks to a 16.2% increase in commissions to 18.6 million francs. ‘Personal insurance is one of the main needs of our customers. We will continue to develop and strengthen this sector,” said Ewald Burgener, managing director, quoted in the press release.
Income from trading operations fell by 8.5% to 3.7 million francs. The bank’s holdings boosted other ordinary results (+61% to 2.9 million).
Valiant’s expansion strategy continues to weigh on expenses, which increased by 7.9% to 67.8 million francs. The Bernese group will inaugurate a new branch in Pully (VD) this Monday, May 9, after the opening of that of Wädenswil (ZH) on April 11. At the end of March, the establishment employed 1,005 full-time equivalents.
Operating profit increased by 6.3% to 34.3 million francs, while net profit increased by 3.8% to 27.5 million.
Compared to the end of December, the amount on the balance sheet increased by 2.4% to 36.42 billion francs, including 26.04 billion (+1.3%) in mortgage loans and 22.48 billion (+1.5% ) customer deposits.
For the 2022 financial year as a whole, the management expects a ‘stable development of business’ and a slight increase in profit.
Valiant launched a new program in February aimed at improving the group’s profitability with a deadline of the end of 2023. The first effects could already be noticeable this year, according to the press release. By 2024, between 12 and 15 million francs should be saved. Return on equity, a profitability indicator, is expected to improve by 0.5 percentage points.
/ATS