SUN Savings Bank continued to achieve remarkable results in the first quarter of 2023, as its total assets grew by almost 50 percent to P3.3 billion from only P2.23 billion a year ago.

Total loans also increased significantly by 57 percent to P2.6 billion and the quality of the loan portfolio continued to improve further as its non-performing loan ratio declined to 2.5 percent from 2.7 percent.

Liquid assets consisting primarily of deposits with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and other big banks likewise grew to P340 million from just P194 million in the prior year.

To support its high loan growth and liquidity levels, the bank attracted more deposits which grew by 23 percent to P1.82 billion by end-March 2023, as compared to P1.48 billion a year ago.

The growth in deposits came primarily from time deposits to match the term loans given to Department of Education teacher borrowers. The bank also availed itself of medium term bank loans amounting to P925 million.

To ensure that the bank will have a strong and stable base on which to grow its loans and deposits, the shareholders increased their paid-in capital to P391 million from P320 million in the prior year. Combined with the increased retained earnings due to the highly profitable operations of the bank, total shareholders' equity reached a record level of P490 million as of March 31.

Given the strong loan growth and high net interest margins of 10 percent, the bank generated a solid net income of P26.8 million in the first quarter of 2023. This net income attained was 160 percent higher than the P10.3 million earned during the comparable quarter in 2022. This resulted in an annualized return on equity of 24.8 percent, more than double the return of 11 percent posted a year ago.

Towards the end of the first quarter, the bank launched its major initiative towards greater financial inclusion, by offering its rewarding rates of seven percent per annum tax free for a five-year time deposit of P50,000.

Lower time deposit amounts of P15,000 and P30,000 for shorter terms, are also being offered rewarding rates of 5.5 percent per annum and six percent per annum, respectively. This is to enable more depositors to also enjoy the rewarding rates that large banks generally offer only to their big clients.

The objective of the bank is simply to enable more depositors to earn a more rewarding interest income on their hard-earned deposits so that they can cope with the adverse effects of high inflation. The rewarding interest earned also allows depositors to save funds for their children's college education or fulfil their dreams, such as traveling. (PR)