Bank Ireland (BKIR)

[biginvestors]

Bank of Ireland has this morning reported operating profit before impairment provisions of €380m, compared with €37m in the first half of 2012.

The bank said its total income in the first half of 2013 was €1,188m, an increase of 36pc of €313m over the same period in 2012, due primarily to the increase in its net interest margin and lower ELG (eligible liabilities guarantee) fees.

Pre-tax losses for the period were €504m, compared with €1,260m in H1 2012.

The bank said it repaid €6m of ECB funding during the first half of 2013 and has repaid €24bn or 70pc of that funding since the start of the bailout programme. It said has returned €3.9bn of the €4.8bn invested in the group by the State.

It said approvals of new and increased credit for SMEs were €1.9bn in the first half of 2013, which was up 14pc on 2012.

And it said it is actively working with challenged Irish mortgage and SME customers to provide sustainable restructuring of their loans. It said owner occupied default arrears of three months or more were 10.52pc on 30 June 2013, compared to 9.88pc at the end of December and 9.22pc at the end of June 2012.

“In the first half of 2013, while economic conditions remained challenging, we continued to deliver on our strategic objectives,” said chief executive Richie Boucher. “The actions we have taken and the investments we have been making in our core franchises have continued the momentum to enable us to move closer to profitability.”

http://businessandleadership.com/business/item/42155-bank-of-ireland-moving/02/08/2013