European Merchant Bank (“EMBank”) announced an exceptional financial performance for the first half of 2023, showcasing significant growth across key indicators. The Bank’s strong commitment to innovation, customer-centricity, and strategic planning as well as prudent risk management has resulted in outstanding achievements across various metrics.
EMBank’s continued growth highlights its position as a challenger in the banking and finance sector. With its continuous investment to customer satisfaction and innovation, the company is poised to continue its upward trajectory.
Highlights of the Financial Performance
Net Profit Soars: EMBank reported a net profit of EUR 310 thousands for the first half of 2023, marking a remarkable 138% increase compared to the same period last year. This substantial growth demonstrates the Bank’s effective management and growth strategies.
Gross Income Grows: The Bank achieved a substantial gross income of EUR 4.271 thousands, indicating a 38% increase compared to the first half of the previous year. This growth underscores EMBank’s ability to capture market opportunities and deliver value to its stakeholders.
NII Doubles: The Net Interest Income (NII) for the first half of 2023 reached EUR 1.412 thousands, reflecting an impressive 106% increase from the same period last year. This substantial achievement highlights the company’s successful balance between prudent financial practices and continued growth of the lending portfolio with a strong focus on SMEs in the local market.
Asset Expansion: EMBank reached EUR 131 million in asset size with a 14% growth compared to the previous year. This growth signifies the company’s solid financial foundation and its ability to drive sustainable growth in a competitive market.
Strong Deposits and Loans Performance: The company’s deposit base expanded to EUR 118 million, marking a commendable 16% increase compared to the Q2 of 2022. Simultaneously, EMBank’s loan portfolio surged to EUR 33.4 million, showcasing a remarkable 40% growth during the same period of last year. This growth reflects EMBank’s effective approach to serving its customers’ financial needs.
Sarp Demiray (CEO): “We are thrilled to announce these outstanding financial results for the first half of 2023. These achievements are a testament to the dedication and hard work of our team, as well as our strategic vision to create value for our customers. We remain committed to driving innovation and excellence in the banking providing top-notch services and products. Despite external limitations resulting from the intricacies of global developments, the Bank has achieved remarkably favourable financial outcomes. These achievements have stemmed from substantial investments in robust governance practices and the enhancement of product and service capabilities. Looking ahead, EMBank aspires to become the primary partner for SMEs, businesses, and FinTechs. Simultaneously, our goal is to augment the asset size to exceed EUR 225 million by the end of 2025.”
Mr. Demiray also acknowledged that “Our skilled team has been consistently fortified, experiencing a remarkable 25% expansion over the past year. This expansion has facilitated the launch of novel offerings like leasing services and Euribor-based deposits. Furthermore, a special no-fee offer has been extended to local businesses until the year’s end. All these efforts, with the support of our new outdoor marketing campaign and new communication channels led us more than double our SME and business customer base in the local market.
The EMBank is actively invested in enhancing customer satisfaction through a suite of modern capabilities, encompassing APIs, a new mobile platform, a fresh type of current/saving account and new multicurrency payment capabilities, along with solutions for supply chain finance and trade finance. Our commitment to constructing an infallible risk management framework is evident through substantial investments in new tools and partnerships, with a particular emphasis on credit risk, fraud and AML/CTF compliance risk domains, coupled with team expansion.”
Ekmel Cilingir, the Chairman of the EMBank Supervisory Board, highlighted the Bank’s ongoing commitment to its SME clientele. “The bank’s performance underscores the effectiveness of its dedicated approach to serving the SME market with top-tier service and individualized attention.” He expressed confidence in the bank’s direction, affirming EMBank’s steadfast focus on the SME sector within the Lithuanian market. “We are working on enriching our product lineup and payment capabilities to empower SMEs in making well-informed decisions regarding financial solutions that perfectly align with their requirements.”
EMBank is licensed by the European Central Bank (ECB) and is a member of SEPA, SWIFT and TARGET2. The bank provides working capital and investment loans, especially for SMEs. The Bank also offers Banking as a Service (BaaS) solutions.
