Press releases

“We expect 2009 to follow the success of 2007 and 2008 and our profit after tax to hit a record level of more than CZK 800 million, exceeding 2008’s profit of CZK 543 million by CZK 250 million. Recently we  adjusted  our corporate strategy to reflect our desire to maximise shareholders´ returns. In addition to today’s strong financial results, our loan portfolio is very sound. We believe this sends a positive message to our shareholders, partners and clients in the current difficult economic climate.”

Highlights

Financial Results

PPF banka expects to reach a profit after tax of CZK 800 million for the full year ended 31 December 2009. This  represents an increase  of 49% against the same period for 2008, when the Bank posted profits after tax of CZK 543 million. The increase was driven primarily by profits from financial operations, which have increased from CZK 400 million to CZK 532 million in the period under review. These are preliminary results and the audited results are expected to be announced in March 2010.

Due to the prolonged  economic and financial crisis, the Bank has focused on the quality of its interest-bearing portfolio; the  income derived from commissions and fees  and on new activities in the retail loan business. The volume of bad debts (classified as loans overdue for more than 90 days) is expected to be lower than 0.5%. These results were supported by the anticipated growth of risk-free earnings emanating from income recieved from commissions and fees of more than 47% (CZK 283 million vs. CZK 192 million). The volume of loans provided to clients increased by 53% year on year to CZK 13.5 billion as at 31 December 2009 (CZK 8.8 billion at the end of 2008).  This increase can be attributed primarily to the new activities undertaken by the bank.

The Bank’s total assets as at 31 December 2009 are expected to remain unchanged from 2008 at around CZK 43.2 billion. Return on equity (ROE) and cost/income ratio (CIR) are expected to be better than average at approximately 30% and 40% respectively.

PPF banka a.s. is part of PPF Group, a leading international investment group. PPF Group N.V. holds a 92.96% stake and the City of Prague 6.7% in the bank.