From the entire national banking system, only 4 entities, all of them private banks, have reported real increases in their profits at the end of Setptember.
"There are two main reasons for this slowdown in the banking business: there is little growth in loan placement, and arrears have increased, forcing the banks to spend more in reserves", reported Elfinancierocr.com.
Source: elfinancierocr.com
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January 2010
From January to November 2009, earnings at state banks reached $125 million, 28.4% less than the same period of 2008.
Banks blame the economic crisis, which caused a sharp contraction in credit.
"Data from the Banking Superintendence (Sugef), also points to other factors, like increased administrative expenses, and in some cases, less earnings for services", reported Prensalibre.cr.
December 2009
For the third quarter of 2009, Panamanian banks reported profits for $675.8 million.
In the same period of 2008, banks racked up $860.1 million in profits.
"The drop is mainly because banks are receiving less interest on deposits (around 50% less)", reported Prensa.com.
February 2011
Nine of the eleven private banks operating in the market generated fewer profits in 2010 than in 2009.
The data published by the Superintendence of Financial Institutions (SUGEF), dos not provide information on Bansol, which began operations in November 2010.
"Private banks were mainly affected by the 9% drop of the dollar in 2010, as most of their assets are in that currency," reported the article in Nacion.com, "Since financial statements are done in Colones, transferring their assets from Dollars into Colones results in a lower valuation due to lost value in the price of the currency."
January 2010
In 2009, banks in the country had net earnings of $190,32 million, 34% less than in 2008.
Data from banking superintendent SUGEF shows that state-owned banks fared worse than privately-owned ones. The first suffered from a 37% reduction in earnings, while the latter 28%.
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