In the first quarter of 2017, mBank Group earned a net profit of PLN 219 million. The result was helped by higher income (over PLN 1 billion) and positive business development with customer base growing by 100 thousand quarter on quarter. The profit was reduced by a contribution to the Bank Guarantee Fund’s resolution scheme.
In Q1 2017, the income of mBank Group increased by 3.5% QoQ to PLN 1.08 billion. It was driven by a higher net trading income and stable income from the core business.
Operating costs went up by 17.4% to PLN 577.7 million. The elevated costs are attributable to the payment of a mandatory annual contribution to the Bank Guarantee Fund’s resolution scheme. Risk costs rose as well due to higher net impairment losses on loans and advances. They stood at 41 basis points in Q1 2017 (compared with 20 basis points a quarter earlier).
The amount of the bank tax paid by the Group dropped slightly against the previous quarter to PLN 91.3 million.
Net loans and advances after March 2017 did not change considerably compared with the previous three months and stood at PLN 81.7 billion. Customer deposits shrank by 2.9% to PLN 88.7 billion over the quarter. The loan-to-deposit ratio of mBank Group amounted to 92.1%.
The level of mBank Group’s capital ratios increased in Q1 2017 in connection with the inclusion of the 2016 profit in own funds. At the end of March 2017, the Total Capital Ratio and Common Equity Tier 1 ratio stood at 21.6% and 18.8%, respectively.
mBank had a good start into the year. The number of retail customers increased by almost 100 thousand. The corporate customer base expanded by nearly 300 firms. As a result, mBank was serving over 5.4 million retail and corporate customers in three markets (Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia) in Q1 2017.
mBank also announced its plans related to the development and commercialization of new financial technologies. The bank will invest EUR 50 million, i.e. more than PLN 200 million, in technology start-ups as part of the mAccelerator project. It will be the first venture of this kind in Central and Eastern Europe. mBank wants to join the leaders of digital transformation in the financial sector. The investment will be of benefit to customers who will be the first to get access to the new solutions.
Moreover, mBank has recently won the “Golden Bank” title for the excellent quality of customer service provided in all channels. The title is awarded by “Puls Biznesu” and “Bankier.pl” in the “Golden Banker” competition. mBank was also rewarded for the best practices in the field of security.