BAKU

Commercial banks in Azerbaijan increased net profit by 16.9 percent year-on-year to 173.9 million manats ($63.4 million) in the first quarter of this year.

The central bank said that total assets rose by 3.1 percent from the beginning of the year to 39.7 billion manats as of April 1, while total liabilities rose by 3.7 percent to 34.7 billion manats.

The loan portfolio of banks rose by 5.2 percent to 17.5 billion manats in January-March this year, the central bank said. Total capitalisation declined by 0.6 percent to 4.9 billion manats. The deposit portfolio increased by 4.9 percent to 28.3 billion manats, including deposits by individuals, which rose by 12.9 percent to 10.2 billion manats.

There are 26 banks in Azerbaijan, including 12 with foreign capital. The largest bank by assets, the state-owned International Bank of Azerbaijan, reported a net profit of 139,592 million manats in 2021, 22 percent down from a year earlier.

The bank said that its assets rose by 27.7 percent year-on-year to 11.75 billion manats, while its liabilities rose by 33.9 percent to 10.05 billion manats. ABB’s loan portfolio rose by 23.4 percent last year to 2.96 billion manats. The bank’s deposits rose by 52.9 percent to 8.70 billion manats, while its capital rose by 0.3 percent to 1.70 billion manats.

Azerbaijan’s banking sector started to recover last year and lenders reported a rise in total net profit of 7.2 percent year-on-year of 609 million manats.

The country’s economy expanded by 6.8 percent in the first quarter of this year, up from a 1.3 percent contraction a year earlier, supported by the non-oil sector expansion and rising global oil prices.

The non-oil sector grew by over 10.1 percent in January-March. In the first quarter of the last year, the non-oil sector grew by 2.1 percent.

Azerbaijan’s GDP grew by 5.6 percent in 2021, up from a 4.3 percent contraction a year earlier as the country eased the majority of the restrictions it had imposed to curb the coronavirus pandemic. The country projects economic growth at 3.9 percent in 2022, although the projection might be revised upwards due to rising global oil prices.