BSP Vanuatu Announces Profit of VT186.5m

Regenvanu said: "2019 saw a reduction of 36% in net profit to Vt186.5m. The decrease was mainly a result of the softening economic position in Vanuatu and also an increase in operational expenditure in the business."

The bank's break-up of the actual results are as follows:

• Deposits from customers increased by 6.4% to Vt16.3b;
• Loan portfolio remained relatively stable at Vt9.6b;
• Total Income decreased by Vt33m to Vt1.129b. The majority of this decrease was from Non Interest Income;
• Total expenses increased by Vt67.5m to Vt942.9m primarily due to increased insurance costs and depreciation costs from capital investments in Freswota Branch along with higher Impairment costs due to required provisioning uplift for loans.
• Net profit was Vt186.5m; and
• Capital & Reserves were Vt1.962b which is well above RBV minimum requirements.

Mr Regenvanu also highlighted some of the notable achievements for BSP Vanuatu during the year: opening of the Freswota Branch; the addition of 4 new ATM machines to its fleet and also the successful installation of the Bank's disaster recovery site at the Freswota Branch.

"Having the successful opening of the Freswota Branch in March 2019 and the successful implementation of the Disaster Recovery site, ensures that BSP continues to grow our service points for customers while also ensuring that we are able to provide our services at all times to customers. The introduction of EMV chip technology in 2020 will also provide greater convenience and give greater protection to our customers when using their Visa Debit Cards."

Regenvanu's announcement comes after the BSP Chairman Sir Kostas Constantinou released the BSP Group Full Year Results - 31^st December, 2019, last week, noting a record consolidated operating profit after tax of K890.4 million (VUV31b), a 5.5% increase from 2018. Group CEO Robin Fleming and the board congratulated BSP Vanuatu on the results for 2019.