Colombia’s financial institutions posted a combined net profit of 3.08 trillion Colombian pesos ($1.70 billion) during the first half of the year, up 14% from the same period in 2009, the country’s banking regulator said Friday.
The increase was due to higher revenues from lending, the regulator said.
Locally owned private-sector banks reported COP1.92 trillion in profits in the first half of the year, up from COP1.72 trillion in the same period in 2009.
Net profit at Bancolombia, the country’s largest bank by assets, rose 8.2% to COP601 billion. The net profit figure only includes Bancolombia and not its subsidiaries in Colombia and abroad.
Banco de Bogota, the country’s second-largest bank, posted a net profit of COP389 billion, up 10% from the same period in 2009, when it booked a net profit of COP353 billion.
The country’s largest bank, Banco Davivienda, booked a net profit of COP247 billion in the first half of the year, up 10% from COP224 billion in the period in 2009. Davivienda will hold an initial public offering on the local stock exchange later this year.
Among foreign-owned banks, the local unit of Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA earned COP232 billion, up from COP204 billion. The local unit of Spain’s Banco Santander SA reported its net profit rose 17% to COP53 billion from COP45 billion.
The local unit of U.K. bank HSBC PLC posted a net loss of COP20 billion. The loss compares with a net loss of COP7.4 billion in the first half of 2009.
The local unit of Citigroup Inc. reported a profit of COP73 billion, 43% lower than in the same period a year ago. (Inti Landauro / Dow Jones)