(Finance) – “The first half of 2023 of BPER Bank was “to framewith results that will be hardly repeatable in the second half of the year. The bank has been able to combine a development activity with a consolidation activity. We must thank the network which, in a difficult market, has been able to ride the wave and achieve successful objectives. Will be a year that will certainly give satisfactory results“. This was stated by the CEO Piero Luigi Montani in the call with analysts that followed the publication of the results for the first half of 2023.
“The plan is ahead of expectations – he explained – Like everyone else, we were helped by the increase in the interest margin, but the business plan unleashed all its effects in a complete and anticipated manner, and therefore we are optimistic in being able to face the macroeconomic context with serenity”.
Montani underlined that “the network is performing very wellgiving unpredictable results” and that “all the new branches are performing well and we think we have good customer and commission development”.
After the increase in the guidance for 2023, the CEO did not go any further: “We do not feel like giving a forecast for 2024let’s wait another quarter, and we will have clearer ideas”.
Regarding the path of the ECB’s interest rates and their effect on the bank’s accounts, he highlighted that “this semester we have reached the peak of the interest margin“.
To a question regarding the recent ECB-EBA stress tests, he replied: “There is no indication from the ECB on the recent assessments, which went well. In the overall comparison, one of the lowest results comes out, but we were starting from a figure as at 31 December which penalized us, because we forfeited the DTAs in December, which went to the capital on 1 January”.
“On the front ofBUTI already said it. Nowadays it is not a priority – stated Montani – We want to integrate well the two realities that we have acquired and bring them up to speed in the shortest possible time. M&A is not a problem of today, we are not looking into it and we have nothing to say — so it’s not rates — and we believe the capital levels we have are appropriate. We’ll look at it in the future.”