BMA: banking profits jump by $8m in third quarter of 2024
The Bermuda banking sector’s net profit after tax amounted to $138.7 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 6.1 per cent, or $8 million, compared with the previous quarter, a report by the Bermuda Monetary Authority reveals.
The quarterly banking digest produced by the island’s financial services regulator said net interest income for the quarter was $191.3 million, a 1 per cent increase from the previous quarter, while non-interest income marginally decreased to $85.3 million from $85.4 million over the quarter.
The total income for the quarter was $276.6 million, which reflects a marginal growth of 0.7 per cent, or $1.8 million, compared with the previous quarter.
The BMA said total expenses for the quarter, encompassing operating and non-operating costs, amounted to $136.6 million.
This represents a decrease of 4.5 per cent, or $6.5 million, compared with the previous quarter.
The sector’s efficiency was 49.4 per cent, reflecting a 2.7 percentage point decrease compared with the previous quarter.
Banking sector assets at quarter-end were $24 billion, reflecting a marginal increase of 0.8 per cent over the quarter.
The BMA said this net growth is attributed to a 2.6 per cent, or $0.3 billion, growth in investments, partially offset by a 1.3 per cent, or $0.1 billion, decline in loans and advances.
Total assets decreased by 0.8 per cent, or $0.2 billion, year-on-year, as reflected in the 7.1 per cent, or $0.6 billion, reduction in loans and advances and a 20 per cent, or $0.2 billion, reduction in other assets.
The overall decline was partially offset by the increase in interbank deposits and investments, both of which increased by $0.3 billion.
The BMA said the coverage ratio of provisions to non-performing loans fell by 2.4 percentage points to 24.8 per cent, whereas the proportion of NPLs to total loans experienced a slight increase, up 0.2 percentage points to 5.5 per cent.
The regulator said the banking sector maintains a sound capital position, with a risk asset ratio at 25.6 per cent and the leverage ratio at 7.7 per cent.
The BMA said the domestic money supply saw a moderate rise of 0.9 per cent, reaching $4.2 billion compared with the previous quarter, which represented a 3.4 per cent increase from the same period in the previous year.
It said the quarterly growth is because of higher customer deposits, which increased by 0.9 per cent to $4 billion, and the decrease in cash reserves held by banks, which fell by 14.5 per cent to $47 million.
• For the full report, see Related Media
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