2012 has been a very good year for Colombia in terms of macroeconomic indicators: high economic growth, in line with recent years, inflation at an all-time low, fiscal deficit reduction, and improved unemployment rates. This has enabled Colombian companies to benefit from strong domestic demand and new trade agreements, maintaining a high rate of activity, particularly in key sectors such as services, construction and mining.
In this context, in Colombia, BBVA Group closed 2012 with excellent earnings figures, above those achieved by its competitors. The lending business once again saw significant growth. Lending to individuals is up 23.2% year-on-year, with a significant contribution from all of its lines: consumer lending, including credit cards, and mortgage loans (up 29.2% and 16.9% year-on-year, respectively), which has enabled the bank to post, once again, gains in its market shares: 112 basis points in consumer lending, 60 in cards and 32 in mortgage loans. This has resulted in an overall increase of 42 basis points in the private individual portfolio (data as of November). The performance of the loan book has been accompanied by a strong boost in new customer funds, which are up 27.3% on the closing figure for 2011. Year-on-year gains in the market share of all customer fund lines have also been posted: up 57 basis points in demand deposits, 131 points in savings accounts, and 169 points in time deposits. Once again, asset quality indicators posted an excellent performance, which has enabled the bank to lead the sector. The insurance business has also performed well, driven by bancassurance and NTI. As a result, the country’s net attributable profit continued to grow at a year-on-year rate of 18.7% to €331m.