Raiffeisenbank’s net profit in the Czech Republic rose 89 percent year-on-year to CZK 5.47 billion in the first three quarters. The bank’s assets rose 14 percent to CZK 599 billion. The bank said this in a press release on Thursday. Profits are also significantly up this year for other big banks.

The volume of loans granted to Raiffeisenbank’s clients rose 36 percent year-on-year to CZK 351 billion at the end of September. Deposits received from customers rose nearly 18 percent to CZK 493 billion. The growth was driven by increasing balances in savings accounts and time deposits, both on the household and corporate sides. The merger with Equa Bank contributed to the significant growth in loans and deposits.

The bank’s total operating income increased 66.4 percent to CZK 13.59 billion. Net interest income increased by 114 percent to CZK 11.03 billion. The increase was mainly due to rising market interest rates as monetary policy tightened in the context of the fight against inflation.

Net fee and commission income rose by 28.4 percent to CZK 3.25 billion. Raiffeisenbank’s operating expenses of CZK 6.84 billion increased by 38.7 percent year-on-year.

Other large banks in the Czech Republic also reported year-on-year growth in results. Moneta Money Bank’s net profit rose 42 percent year-on-year to CZK 4.1 billion. Czech and Slovak UniCredit Bank reported a net profit of CZK 6.62 billion for the first half of this year, up 26 percent year-on-year.

Raiffeisenbank is one of the largest banking houses in the Czech Republic. It would therefore be affected by the proposed tax on extraordinary profits. The finance ministry proposed the “windfall tax” as a 60 percent tax surcharge on excessive profits. According to the proposal, this corresponds to the difference between the tax base and the average cost of the tax base over the last four years, plus 20 percent.

The parliament has not yet approved the government’s proposal, and the tax will only be applied to next year’s profits.

The government will use the tax proceeds to cover the extra costs the state will incur in connection with the capping of energy prices. The tax should be paid by energy, oil, and mining companies and banks.

Raiffeisenbank has been providing banking services in the Czech Republic since 1993. The majority shareholder is the Austrian financial institution Raiffeisen Bank International.

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