In 2016, Croatian banks posted profits of more than 6 billion kuna.
In 2016, banks in Croatia reported gross profits from operations totalling 6.37 billion kuna, announced the Croatian National Bank (HNB), reports tportal.hr on March 2, 2017.
Business results of banks in 2016 were significantly better than those in 2015, when the reservations due to potential costs of conversion of Swiss franc loans into euros resulted in the losses in excess of 4.7 billion kuna at the level of the entire banking system.
The central bank data include 26 banks which operate on the Croatian market, but do not include Jadranska Banka, which entered into receivership in October 2015. The bank did submit its report, but “due to certain discrepancies, the data will not be published”, noted the Croatian National Bank.
HNB’s interim unaudited data as of 31 December 2016 show that there were 17 banks which recorded gross profit last year. The highest gross profit, slightly higher than 2.1 billion kuna, was recorded by Zagrebačka Banka, which a year earlier reported a loss of 662.3 million kuna (according to unaudited data which was published by the Croatian National Bank in early March 2016).
With almost two billion kuna in gross profits, Privredna Banka Zagreb (PBZ) was ranked second. In 2015, it had an operating profit of 207.9 million kuna.
The third largest bank on the Croatian market, as measured by the size of assets, Erste Bank, last year achieved gross operating profits of 830.2 million kuna, after it lost 1.24 billion kuna in 2015. Raiffeisenbank Austria (RBA) reported profits of 584.8 million kuna, and the year before it had a loss of 310.7 million kuna. It was followed by Societe Generale-Splitska banka, with the profits of 467.8 million kuna, while the sixth largest bank, the state-owned Croatian Postal Bank, had profits of 185.1 million kuna.
According to HNB data, the total loss of eight banks which ended last year with negative results was 250.3 million kuna. More than half of that amount, or 134.1 million kuna, refers to the loss of Veneto Bank, followed by Vaba Banka Varaždin, which in early 2017 changed its name to J&T Banka, with a gross loss of 86.6 million kuna. Losses were also posted by Samoborska Banka (9.3 million kuna), Tesla Štedna Banka and Imex Banka (each with a loss of 5.4 million kuna), Karlovačka Banka (5.2 million kuna), Kovanica Banka (3.1 million kuna) and Slatinska Banka (1.2 million kuna).
The Croatian National Bank’s interim unaudited data also include five building societies, which last year achieved a total profit of more than 56 million kuna. The highest profits (31.3 million kuna) were posted by Prva Stambena Štedionica, followed by Raiffeisen (12.6 million kuna), Wustenrot (4.5 million kuna), PBZ Stambena Štedionica (4.1 million kuna) and HPB Stambena Štedionica (3.6 million kuna).
If we add up the data on banks and building societies, the gross profits of all credit institutions at the end of last year amounted to 6.43 billion kuna, while in 2015 they recorded a loss of 4.69 billion kuna.
