Credit growth boosts BDO earnings in 2022

MANILA, Philippines — BDO Unibank Inc. saw its fortunes improve last year as its core lending business benefitted from the Philippine economy’s reopening, but the company remained wary of roiling external headwinds.

In a disclosure sent to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Monday, the Sy-led bank reported its net income surged 33.4% year-on-year to P57.1 billion in 2022.

Gross customer loans inched up 9% on-year due to the economy’s reopening. The national government’s decision to ease restrictions early in the second quarter of 2022 led to an explosion in consumer spending but fanned inflationary pressures.

“While macroeconomic challenges remain with persistent inflation and foreign exchange and interest rate volatility, BOO believes that its established business franchise and strong balance sheet will allow the Bank to surmount near-term risks and capitalize on structural growth opportunities to attain long-term sustainable growth,” the statement read.

The Sy-led bank’s total deposits grew 14% year-on-year.

Fee-based income, which boosted the bottom lines of most banks since the pandemic, supported BDO’s performance in 2022. This and foreign exchange and fixed-income earnings, BDO’s net interest income inched soared 17% to 71.5 billion in the same period.

The bank’s non-performing loan ratio hit 1.95% in 2022.

As of 10:06 a.m. Monday, shares in BDO were trading up 0.16%.