Permanent TSB Group Holdings will outline plans later this year on resuming dividend payments for the first time since 2008, the bank said today after reporting a near four-fold rise in full-year underlying profit.
PTSB has been transformed into a much larger player in the last year after buying €6.75 billion of loans from Ulster Bank as it left the Irish market, while it also benefited from the exit of KBC Bank Ireland.
The Central Bank lifted a dividend blocker in December that was introduced in 2016 as part of the majority state-owned bank's post-financial crisis rescue plan.
PTSB was effectively nationalised following the crisis and the state still holds a 57% stake.
NatWest also holds an 11.7% shareholding in PTSB.
The home loans focused bank, which had a 19% share of the mortgage market last year, said it would announce its distribution policy in the second half of 2024.
Its underlying profit jumped to €166m from €45m after the Ulster Bank transaction added gross interest income of €170m last year.
The bank said its net interest income rose 71% to €620m, mainly due to higher interest rates as well as increased loan volumes.
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PTSB expects 2024 net interest income to be broadly in line with last year and flagged a mid-single digit increase in 2024 operating costs due to the impacts of inflation, business growth and investment.
But the lender's pre-tax profits for the year to the end of 2023 fell to €79m from €267m in 2022, due to the inclusion of negative goodwill after the purchase of the retail and business banking businesses of Ulster Bank.
During the year PTSB completed the integration of the Ulster Bank businesses, including 330 former Ulster Bank staff, over 65,000 mortgage customers, an Asset Finance business, a private banking team and a business banking book.
PTSB said its customer deposits for the year stood at €23 billion, an increase of about 6% on an annual basis.
It said its total new lending of €2.8 billion was in line year on year as growth in business banking and consumer finance loans offset lower new mortgage lending .
New mortgage lending fell by 11% to €2.3 billion, with the overall new mortgage market about 14% lower than the previous year. It added that its new business mortgage market share stood at 19.2% at the end of 2023 compared to 18.5% at December 2022.
PTSB expects 2024 net interest income to be broadly in line with last year and flagged a mid-single digit increase in 2024 operating costs due to the impacts of inflation, business growth and investment.
The bank's chief executive Eamonn Crowley said today's results demonstrate real momentum through a robust financial performance, driven by income growth, a strong deposit franchise and good asset quality.
"2023 was a very significant year for PTSB as we supported customers with new lending of €2.8 billion, while also successfully completing the integration of Ulster Bank businesses," Mr Crowley said.
"In October, we announced a major overhaul of our brand and customer positioning for the first time in over 20 years, with PTSB becoming the new brand name for the bank and the introduction of a new customer promise 'Altogether more human'. This repositioning reflects our ambitions as a full-service personal and business bank and our focus on changing customer needs," he said.
"Looking to the year ahead, we remain in a strong position to build on the momentum of 2023 as we continue to grow our business, invest in our customer, colleague and community experience, while delivering sustainable returns for our shareholders," he added.
Shares in the bank were lower in Dublin trade today.
