Gotianun-led EastWest Bank (EW) made remarkable progress in restoring its momentum in 2022 as it bounces back to its pre pandemic level.

In its recent earnings report, released last March, EW declared a net income of ₱4.6 billion for the whole year allowing it to declare cash dividends amounting to ₱925 million this year.

Excluding one-off items in 2021, EastWest’s 42-percent surge in net income was largely driven by core lending businesses. Return on equity was recorded at 7.7 percent, while total assets ended at ₱421.4 billion.

Although total assets grew marginally at four percent from 2021, its composition is significantly different. Excess liquidity was deployed to higher yielding consumer loans and investment assets. The loans portfolio grew by 21 percent while investment assets by 24 percent. With the reopening of the economy, EW made significant progress with its credit card and key salary loan portfolios. Pent-up consumer demand allowed the bank to post a 24 percent growth in cards receivables, with salary loans also growing faster at 96 percent.

EW made progress in improving its funding base as CASA grew by 6.5 percent. Total deposits were steady at ₱329.2 billion with CASA ratio improving to 79 percent, up from the previous year’s 75 percent.

This strong performance allowed the bank to declare cash dividends of ₱925 million, with a dividend payout ratio of 20 percent equivalent to ₱0.41 per share, to be paid out to stockholders on May 31, 2023.

In light of the direction it set for its growth this year, the bank invested heavily on IT systems to help improve its digital services, prime it for faster digital innovations, and improve its operating costs through automation.

Its capital ratios continue to stand at a healthy 13.8 percent and 13.0 percent for Capital Adequacy Ratio and Common Equity Tier 1 ratio, respectively, well above the regulatory requirements.

“The full year impact of our 2022 asset buildup will be felt this year on our core income performance. The growth momentum should improve this further as we exceed pre-pandemic asset levels. We believe that EW is at the right place and at the right time, as we partner with our customers to rebuild and grow together,” concluded newly appointed EW CEO Jerry G. Ngo.