CYPRUS: Coop Bank 1H profits drop to €46.7m

The Cooperative Central Bank reported a net profit EUR 46.7 mln in the first six months of the year, down from EUR 85.6 mln in the same period of 2014, due mainly to a drop in net interest income to EUR 166.7 mln compared to EUR 203.5 mln in the first half of 2014.

The bank raised its provisions for loan impairments in the first half by EUR 51.5 mln compared to EUR 53.6 mln the year before.
Total loans dropped to EUR 9.9 bln in June from EUR 10.1 bln in December, while overall deposits rose from EUR 12.4 bln to EUR 12.7 bln. Non-performing loans rose in June rose to EUR 7.6 bln or 58% of the bank’s loanbook, up from EUR 7.3 bln or 55.8% in December.
Executive Chairman Nicolas Hadjiyiannis said that the Cooperative sector will implement a 12-month strategic plan to manage its NPLs, starting from September, and that a US firm has been recruited to support the implementation of the plan and to transfer best practices and international expertise.
Up until the end of August, the Cooperative Central Bank has restructured 6,500 loans worth EUR 550 mln with the aim to reach EUR 900 mln by the end of the year.