On the backdrop of a strong increase in business volumes, April for LHV was characterised by high profitability, with results still being driven by the growing loan portfolio and the interest income earned. It was a strong month for all companies of the Group.
In April, AS LHV Group's consolidated deposits grew by EUR 236 million, and the consolidated loan portfolio by EUR 94 million. The volume of the funds managed by LHV grew by EUR 23 million in April. A total of 6 million payments related to financial intermediaries were made in the month.
In April, AS LHV Group earned EUR 15.8 million in consolidated net profit. AS LHV Pank generated EUR 13 million in net profit, AS LHV Bank Ltd EUR 1.3 million, AS LHV Varahaldus EUR 259 thousand, and AS LHV Kindlustus EUR 64 thousand. In April, the return on equity attributable to the shareholders of LHV Group was 33.3%.
The number of clients of LHV Pank increased by 3,550 over the month, with the issuance of new bank loans reaching a record level. At that, retail loans increased by EUR 26 million, while corporate loans increased by EUR 56 million. As the credit quality persisted to be on a good level, discounts remained lower than planned. Of the EUR 135 million increase in the bank's deposits, the deposits of regular clients accounted for EUR 110 million and the deposits of financial intermediaries for EUR 111 million, while the volume of deposits raised from platforms decreased by EUR 43 million, and the deposits of the Group's companies also decreased.
LHV Bank Ltd, which operates in the United Kingdom, also continued to actively raise deposits: the deposits of financial intermediaries increased by EUR 17 million, while an additional EUR 39 million in deposits were raised from platforms. The interest rates on deposits remained below the central bank's interest rates. In April, the loan portfolio of LHV Bank increased by EUR 13 million, while the pre-approved loan projects reached the extent of EUR 85 million. The focus of LHV Bank remains on growing the loan portfolio and developing the offering of retail banking services.
Despite falling stock markets, April still provided good rates of return for the actively managed funds of LHV Varahaldus. The rates of return of the funds also had a positive effect on the profit of LHV Varahaldus; the revenues and expenses remained on the planned level. In April, the number of active clients of the II pillar increased by 300, while as at the end of April, 5,000 clients had declared their wish to increase their II pillar contributions.
A positive increase trend continued for LHV Kindlustus. In April, they concluded 13,600 new insurance contracts, and the number of valid policies increased to 237,000. Over the month, they registered 9,500 new loss events, which were indemnified in the total amount of EUR 1.6 million. The net loss ratio continues on a downward trend.
In April, Moody's Ratings confirmed the new ratings of AS LHV Pank and AS LHV Group, raising the rating of LHV Pank's long-term bank deposits from the current level of Baa1 to A3 (positive outlook), and the rating outlook of LHV Group from the earlier stable to positive, confirming the strong financial position and capitalisation of LHV and expressing expectations of the continued strengthening of creditworthiness.
As at the end of April, the net profit of the consolidation group was ahead of the published financial plan by EUR 14.1 million. The financial plan stands.
AS LHV Group reports are available at: https://investor.lhv.ee/en/reports/.
LHV Group is the largest domestic financial group and capital provider in Estonia. LHV Group's key subsidiaries are LHV Pank, LHV Varahaldus, LHV Kindlustus, and LHV Bank Limited. The Group employs over 1,100 people. As at the end of April, LHV's banking services are being used by 432,000 clients, the pension funds managed by LHV have 120,000 active clients, and LHV Kindlustus protects a total of 167,000 clients. LHV Bank Limited, a subsidiary of the Group, holds a banking licence in the UK and provides banking services to international financial technology companies, as well as loans to small and medium-sized enterprises.
Priit Rum
Communications Manager
Phone: +372 502 0786
Email: priit.rum@lhv.ee
