Erste Group Books EUR 104 Mn H1 Earnings in Hungary

Austria's Erste Group booked first-half net income of EUR 104m at its banking business in Hungary, down 24% from the base period as sectoral taxes — booked for the full year — weighed, an earnings report released on Thursday shows.

Net interest income climbed 19% to EUR 243 million and net revenue from commissions and fees rose 15% to EUR 195 million.

Erste Bank Hungary paid EUR 121 million in bank levies, including a windfall profit tax of EUR 98 million, booked for the full year. It paid EUR 68 million on a financial transactions duty.

Erste Bank Hungary had total assets of EUR 17.552 billion at the end of June, up 38% from twelve months earlier. Client loans rose 22% to EUR 5.799 billion. Stock of client deposits increased 34% to EUR 11.644 billion.

CEO Peter Bosek emphasized that Central and Eastern Europe has entered a stage of development that, in his view, is often still underestimated in Western Europe.

For Erste, the region is not merely an area of operation, but a source of long-term growth where investments and financing needs create significant opportunities.