JAKARTA. State-owned lender PT Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) suffered a 16 percent year-on-year drop in its net profits last year, due to an increase in non-performing loans (NPLs) amid slow economic growth. The company’s net profits fell to Rp 9.1 trillion (US$656 million).

However, the decline in net profits recorded the end of 2015 was less severe than the decline reported in the first half of the year, demonstrating significant improvement in the last six months of 2015, according to BNI president director Achmad Baiquni.

"Net profits were down 50 percent in the first half of 2015, but the full-year decline was lighter, at just 15 percent. The bleeding was stopped," he said during a press conference in Jakarta on Monday.

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In the first half of 2015, NPLs dropped to 3 percent. For comparison, BNI’s NPLs in 2014 were only 2 percent. Consequently, the company’s provision rose by 101.4 percent to Rp 7.3 trillion, which in turn eroded its net profits.

"Some sectors contributed to the NPLs. Last year, we disbursed loans to many oil-and-gas service sectors such as shipping and rigs, as well as to the manufacturing sector," Baiquni said, adding that the lender’s net interest margin (NIM) actually grew around 12 percent last year.

For this year, he continued, BNI had set an ambitious target of double digit net profit growth, assuming the economy improved.

In 2015, the bank disbursed Rp 326.1 trillion of loans, a 17.5 percent increase. Small and medium-sized enterprise loans contributed 28.6 percent, followed by corporate loans (24.6 percent), state-based loans (17.7 percent) and loans to overseas subsidiaries and branches (11.5 percent).

BNI director Rico Rizal Budidarmo added that the company managed to maintain 10.6 percent growth in its consumer loans to Rp 57.5 trillion. Mortgage loans through BNI Griya contributed 60.2 percent and credit cards contributed 17 percent.

"BNI’s credit card segment is still the market leader with a total of 1.7 million users," he explained.

In the same period, BNI’s third party funds were up 18 percent to Rp 370.4 trillion. The bank’s capital adequacy ratio (CAR) strengthened to 19.5 percent, from 16.2 percent in 2014. Assets grew 22.1 percent to Rp 508.6 trillion, Rico said. (Ayomi Amindoni)