“As the economy reopens, sentiment is positive and strong growth is forecasted. Demand for Greek destinations for countries where travel restrictions are lifted and increase in deposits during the lockdown suggest a robust pickup in consumption for at least the rest of year. The first inflows of EU RRF funds are expected before year-end, further adding to the growth potential through investments for 2021 onwards. The vaccination rollout has been accelerated significantly and will contribute to a gradual but swift return to normalcy. In an economic environment with positive prospects, Eurobank focuses on supporting the restart of the economy by assisting our clients, mainly businesses, to regain their footing in the market.
In the first quarter, still in pandemic-driven mode, Eurobank performed solidly, on track to achieve our earnings guidance for the year. In terms of asset quality, as pandemic-related moratoria have mostly expired, a positive signal is coming from low new NPE formation, significantly better than expected. New loan disbursements amounted to more than €1.0bn in the first quarter and are expected to pickup further in the 2nd half of the year. Private sector deposits continued to accumulate, both from households and businesses, and were strongly up by one billion euros from the previous quarter. We expect this pool to fuel not only consumption but also investments going forward. The bank registered another quarter of uninterrupted organic profitability, with net profits up, reaching more than €70 million, with notable contribution from our international activities.
Eurobank, having proactively enhanced its capital base through the merger with Grivalia, timely and successfully executed an accelerated NPE reduction plan, driving its NPE ratio to single-digit this year. Having radically dealt with legacy issues, Eurobank is in a privileged position to make the most of the growth cycle that is starting in all our core markets and we are dedicating all our efforts to this end.”
Fokion Karavias, CEO
