International credit rating agency Moody's Investors Service published an update to their credit analysis on April 27, maintaining a positive outlook on Citadele’s ratings and noting that the bank has built a sustainable franchise that can support continued growth.
Moody’s positive outlook reflects Citadele’s strategic focus on expanding its franchise in the Baltics. The credit opinion also highlighted the commitment of the bank’s owners, which include the EBRD, to continue building the bank and the expectation for Citadele to maintain steady capital and asset quality metrics.
Guntis Beļavskis, CEO of Citadele Bank, said: “Moody's comment is a testament to the bank’s strengthened risk assessment capabilities and our overarching strategy to grow in the Baltics. We are determined to grow by primarily servicing Baltic retail and SME customers and by investing in digital innovation.”
At the end of 2017, Citadele Group’s capital adequacy ratio (CAR) was 18.4%, net profit (before exceptional items) was EUR 31.5 million, client deposits were EUR 2.88 billion, and the net loan portfolio was EUR 1.33 billion.
In 2017, Moody’s Investors Service raised the long-term deposit rating of Citadele by two notches - from B1 to Ba2, with positive outlook.
About Citadele
Citadele is the third-largest bank in Latvia by number of clients. The bank’s shareholders are the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and an international group of investors with global experience in the banking sector. The Citadele Group is managed from Latvia with subsidiaries and branches in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Switzerland. Citadele provides transactions and card payments, loans, deposits, investments, active management and leasing services, as well as a range of exclusive, unique products. In 2017 one of the leading customer service evaluation and improvement companies in Central and Eastern Europe, Dive, acknowledged Citadele as the bank with the best customer service in Latvia and Lithuania.