Bancolombia 1Q 2022 Net Income Soars 219% Year-on-Year

Medellin-based multinational banking giant Bancolombia announced today (May 12) that its first quarter (1Q) 2022 net income skyrocketed 219% year-on-year, to COP$1.73 trillion (US$421 million), from COP$542 billion (US$132 million) in 1Q 2021.

Interest income grew 26% year-on-year, while interest expense rose only 13.7%, thus yielding a net 31% gain.

Assets likewise grew 15% year-on-year, to COP$291 trillion (US$70.8 billion), while liabilities rose 13.7%, to COP$259 trillion (US$63 billion), according to the company.

Gross loans amounted to COP$222 trillion (US$54 billion), up 12.9% year-on-year. When excluding the COP/U.S. dollar effect, the loan bookings rose 12.1%.

During the latest quarter, the Colombian peso appreciated 5.7% against the U.S. dollar, but had depreciated 2.1% against the dollar over the last 12 months. The average peso/dollar exchange rate was 4.4% higher in 1Q 2022 versus 4Q 2021 and 9.9% higher in the last 12 months.

Meanwhile, “retail loans continue with an increasing dynamism while gaining share within the total portfolio on a consolidated basis,” according to Bancolombia.

“Net interest margin expanded from 5.3% in 4Q 2021 to 6.0% in 1Q 2022. This performance is due to higher interest rates driven by the current contractionary monetary policy in Colombia.

“Total provision charges net for 1Q 2022 was COP$267 billion [US$65 million], which indicates a low cost of risk when compared to a normalized level, led by loan-losses provision releases in line with better asset quality trends,” the company added.

During the last 12 months peso-denominated loans grew 14.3% and dollar-denominated loans grew 7.8%.

At the end of 1Q 2022, Bancolombia’s “Banco Agricola” operations in El Salvador, “Banistmo” in Panama and “BAM” in Guatemala represented 26% of total gross loans.

“Gross loans denominated in currencies other than COP — generated by operations in Central America, the international operation of Bancolombia Panamá, Puerto Rico and the U.S. dollar- denominated loans in Colombia — accounted for 33.3% of the portfolio, and decreased 3.8% in the quarter when expressed in COP terms,” according to the company.

“During 1Q 2022, as seen in previous quarters, a growing trend on the loan portfolio persists at the consolidated level, increasing across all geographies.

“Banco Agromercantil [BAM] denotes the highest quarterly growth (6.1% when measured in U.S. dollars), showing good results in all loan categories. The increase of 11.3% in the consumer portfolio is in-line with the strong performance from 2021, gradually gaining market share in Guatemala.

“The operation in Colombia shows a 3.1% growth in the loan balance, again with a positive performance in individuals. When analyzing the annual variation, products such as payrolls and credit cards stand out in retail, as well as mortgages growing 15.9%.

“Banco Agricola reports a positive performance across all segments, growing 1.2% (measured in U.S. dollars) during the latest quarter. The credit portfolio continues to show a balanced share in commercial and retail, representing 43% and 42% respectively within the total loan book, without major changes over the past 12 months.

“Banistmo reveals a 0.1% growth (measured in U.S. dollars) during the quarter. Originations maintain an encouraging trend not only in commercial loans but also in retail and home-lending.”

As for electronic digital-banking efforts, “Bancolombia shows a positive trend in line with 2021 results. As of March 2022, the bank has 6.8 million active digital customers in the retail app, as well as 17.6 million accounts in its financial inclusion platforms — 6.1 million users in ‘Bancolombia a la Mano’ and 11.5 million in ‘Nequi,’” the company added.