Group BBVA reported attributable profit of 4,842 million euros for the January–September period this year, a rise of 47% year over year, and 46.2% at current exchange rates, according to the bank’s Friday release.
Excluding non-recurring items, profit stood at 5,044 million euros, a 37.1% increase. In the third quarter alone, BBVA earned 1,841 million euros, up 34.1% year over year, or 31.4% at constant rates.
The group highlighted that the result reflects robust activity, with double-digit growth in the loan portfolio (up 15% at constant exchange rates) and a continued expansion of recurring income (up 28.8% at constant exchange rates).
CaixaBank earned 2,457 million through September, 17.7% higher on a like-for-like basis
Management noted strong, quality results in the first nine months of the year and expressed optimism for the upcoming quarters, while reaffirming a commitment to supporting companies, families, and society in a stable environment, according to BBVA’s CEO Onur Genç.
In the first nine months of 2022, BBVA delivered solid results despite the uncertainty from the Ukraine conflict and inflationary pressures affecting global growth.
Net interest income rose by 32.6% year over year in the first nine months, reaching 13,811 million euros, propelled by substantial loan growth of 15% versus September 2021 and improved client margins. The bank highlighted strong performance in Mexico, Turkey, and South America.
Net fees and commissions increased 17.4% to 4,030 million euros, driven again by activities in emerging markets. Across the board, the combination of interest margin and net commissions—the recurring income of the banking business—rose 28.8% year over year to 17,842 million euros between January and September.
The result from financial operations reached 1,669 million euros, up 17.4% year over year, aided by gains in the Global Markets unit in key regions.
The other operating income and expenses line recorded a negative 1,145 million euros as of 30 September 2022, largely due to hyperinflation adjustments in Argentina and Turkey and higher contributions to the Single Solution Fund (FUR).
Overall, gross margin for January through September amounted to 18,366 million euros, an annual rise of 21.2%.
In an environment of elevated global inflation, operating expenses rose 14.5% in the first nine months, a figure still below the inflation rate (16.5%) observed in BBVA’s reporting regions.
Santander posted 7,316 million, a 25% increase and the highest nine-month profit
The net profit margin expanded to 10,494 million euros between January and September, up 26.7% year over year. In the third quarter, this metric reached 4,038 million euros, a 44.9% rise from the same period in 2021.
The default rate moved from 3.7% to 3.5% in the quarter, while coverage improved from 78% to 83%. By the end of September, ROE stood at 15% and ROTE at 15.7%.
The group underscored its ongoing commitment to shareholder value, with tangible value plus dividends at 7.66 euros per share as of September 30, marking a 20% annual increase.
This figure includes a gross dividend of 12 euro cents per share, paid on 11 October as part of fiscal 2022 results, representing a 50% increase from October of the prior year.
Santander also maintains a solid capital position with a fully loaded CET1 ratio of 12.45%, above the group’s target range of 11.5% to 12%.
Withdrawal of Spain and Mexico
Spain delivered a recurring result of 1,514 million euros for January through September, driven by improvements in ROF, lower operating expenses and provisions, plus favorable trends in margins and net commissions.
The figure excludes a net impact of -201 million euros from the Merlin office acquisition recorded in the second quarter. When this effect is included, cumulative attributable profit through September 2022 was 1,312 million euros, up 10.2% year over year.
The default rate declined by 13 basis points to 3.9% in the quarter, while coverage rose to 64% by quarter end.
In Mexico, BBVA posted attributable profit of 2,964 million euros for January through September, up 47.5% year over year, driven by strong performance across revenue lines and especially robust net interest income.
This revenue growth led to a significant productivity improvement, with the efficiency ratio improving by 351 basis points to 31.9%.
Finally, 8.6 million new customers joined in the first nine months, a record that is more than 2.5 times the customer additions from five years earlier. Just over half of these new customers joined through digital channels.