- In H1 2023, Citadele issued EUR 429 million in new financing to support Baltic private, SME and corporate customers; EUR 239 million were disbursed to such customers in Q2 2023
- Citadele’s customer deposit base remained stable at EUR 3,872 million as of 30 June 2023
- On the back of attractive digital solutions and services, Citadele’s active customers reached 374 thousand active customers as of 30 June 2023, a 2% growth year over year
- Citadele’s Baltic operations net profit for H1 2023 reached EUR 64.5 million, representing 29.2% return on equity and C/I of 43.0%; Q2 2023 Baltic operations net profit reached EUR 38.5 million, representing return on equity of 33.8% and C/I of 40.8%
- Continued solid asset quality with Non-Performing-Loans ratio of 2.4% and positive CoR on the back of credit loss reversals
“While continuous inflation and high interest rates persistently impact worldwide economic activity, Citadele has demonstrated remarkable resilience and a clear outlook and direction for the future. During Q2 we continued to deliver on our customer support by issuing EUR 239 million of loans while enhancing our digital solutions and services, which not only resulted in an increase in new customers, but another strong NPS result of 43% in Latvia and 41% in Lithuania. This demonstrates the trust customers have in us.” says Johan Akerblom (Johan Åkerblom), Citadele CEO.
Strong first half of the year
The European Central Bank's (ECB) decision to continue interest rate increase has had a positive backdrop on the banking environment in terms of growth of interest income. Consequently, Citadele has also raised interest rates on fixed term deposits during the first half of the year and will continue to monitor the situation to remain competitive.
Citadele has continued to support the business community with financing for growth and expansion. New financing to our private, SME and corporate customers reached EUR 429 million in H1 2023, compared to 646 million in H1 2022. EUR 239 million were disbursed to such customers in Q2. Citadele’s total loan book as of 30 June 2023 was EUR 2,927 million, compared to EUR 2,966 million as of year-end 2022. This is against the backdrop of worsening macro-economic conditions as well as increased Euribor, both which have an impact on our customer’s financial considerations.
Overall, the financial standing of our customers is reassuring, and portfolio quality remains strong. NPL ratio reached its historically lowest level at 2.4% as of 30 June 2023, compared to 2.7% at the end of 2022.
In H1 2023, Citadele’s operating income from continuous operations reached EUR 113.7 million, representing 48% growth year over year. Net profit from continuous operations reached EUR 64.5 million in H1 2023, which translated into 29.2% return on equity. Q2 2023 operating income from continuous operations was EUR 61.7 million, representing 19% growth quarter over quarter. Q2 2023 net profit from continuous operations reached EUR 38.5 million.
Customer deposits remained stable with a slight decrease of 4% compared to 31 December 2022 and constituted EUR 3,872 million as of 30 June 2023. Loan-to-deposit ratio was 76% as of 30 June 2023.
Citadele continues to operate with adequate capital and liquidity ratios: CAR (including net result for the period) was 22.5% and LCR of 182% as of 30 June 2023.
Innovations and development
To ensure a truly digital banking experience, Citadele continued its efforts to enrich its mobile app with new features. In Q1 2023, Citadele launched Accident Insurance via Citadele mobile app (provided by CBL Life), allowing Citadele clients in Latvia and Lithuania to acquire insurance policies 24/7, quickly and conveniently. In Q2 2023, Citadele’s insurance product range was extended by the launch of two new products for clients in Latvia and Lithuania - City Combo Insurance (providing insurance for different means of transportation, e.g., scooters, segways, bicycles, etc) and Purchase Insurance (providing insurance in case a purchased item is damaged or stolen and providing purchase price protection). The new insurance products are provided by Citadele partner – Balcia Insurance SE.
In Q2 2023, Citadele launched automatic scoring system for mortgage loans in Estonia, allowing us to increase the competitiveness of our mortgage loan products and ensuring faster service to clients and a better user experience.
In Q2 2023, Klix, the bank’s e-commerce checkout solution, exceeded 1,000 merchants. In H1 2023, 7.6 million transactions were processed through Klix, with a total value of EUR 260 million, of which 4.1 million transactions with total value EUR 131 million were processed in Q2 2023.
Strong client base
Citadele continues to attract new clients and we are proud of our strong customer base who trust us with their financial service needs. Citadele’s active customers reached 374.3 thousand clients as of 30 June 2023, growing by 2% year over year. The number of active mobile app users reached 240 thousand, growing by 10% year over year.
Sale of Swiss subsidiary
On 8 August 2023, Citadele announced the termination of the Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) previously entered into with Trusted Novus Bank (TNB) in January 2022 for the contemplated sale of all of its shares in Kaleido Privatbank AG (“Kaleido”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Citadele. Since the signing of the SPA in January 2022, TNB and Citadele have been working on completing all conditions to closing, including regulatory approval of the transaction. Due to unforeseen circumstances beyond the control of Citadele, both parties have agreed that the satisfaction of the conditions to closing cannot be achieved and that the SPA shall be terminated in accordance with the terms thereof. The termination of the SPA will have no implication on the business of Kaleido including its clients, partners and employees. Kaleido continues to operate under its current strategy.
About the Citadele Group
Citadele’s mission is to modernise the banking sector and offer more opportunities to cusotmers and businesses throughout the Baltics. In 2022, Citadele issued EUR 1.2 billion in new loans in the Baltics, with its total loan portfolio reaching EUR 3.0 billion, while total deposits reached EUR 4.0 billion by the end of the year. Alongside universal banking services, Citadele offers its clients a range of services based on next-generation financial technology, including its modern mobile app, contactless payments and instant payments. Citadele was the first bank in the Baltics to introduce account opening with a selfie, payment rings and payments to mobile numbers. Citadele is headquartered in Latvia and Citadele group subsidiaries and branches operate in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.
Eva Cildermane
Head of Corporate Communications
Phone: +371 28690176
Email: Eva.Cildermane@citadele.lv
Ilona Frīdmane
Head of Investor Relations & ESG
Phone: +371 29483327
Email: Investor.Relations@citadele.lv