Romania's BRD bank net profit up 12 pct y/y to 1.54 bln in 2018

BRD Groupe Societe Generale SA

07/02/2019 07:18

BUCHAREST, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Romanian lender BRD Groupe
Societe Generale  ROBRD.BX 
    * Says the bank records net profit of 1.54 billion lei 
($369.66
million) in 2018, up 12 percent on the year.
    * Says the Group's net profit amounted to 1.56 billion lei
in
2018, up 10.6 percent on the year, on very solid operating
performance and net cost of risk write-backs. 
    * Says net loans, including leasing receivables, increased
by 4.0
percent on the year. 
    * Says NPL ratio fell to 4.6 percent at end-2018 compared to
6.8
percent at the end of 2017, reflecting write-off operations and
sales of non-performing loans.
    * Says net cost of risk registered 230 million lei
write-backs in
2018 compared to 360 million lei in 2017.
    * Says BRD's total capital ratio stood at 19.6 percent in
December, compared to 19.8 percent in 2017.
    * Says the Board of Directors has decided to propose the
same
level of gross dividend per share as for 2017, of 1.64 lei per
share, subject to shareholders' approval on April 18.
    * Says the government's new tax on banks' financial assets,
"in
reality a tax on loans, would undoubtedly drastically restrict
the banking sector's capacity to continue playing its
fundamental role -actively financing the projects and activities
of all the actors of the economy- and would have clearly
negative consequences for the entire Romanian economy."
Further company coverage: ROBRD.BX

($1 = 4.1660 lei)

 (Reporting by Luiza Ilie)
 ((luiza.ilie@thomsonreuters.com; +4021 527 0312; Reuters
Messaging: luiza.ilie.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))