Czech banks had a successful 2019, with the four largest ones locking down CZK 62.2bn in profits. Idnes.cz reports that taken together, ČSOB, Česká spořitelna, Komerční banka and UniCredit produced CZK 7.1bn more in profits than in 2018. Česká spořitelna was the last of the quartet to announce its results, which showed it finished last year CZK 17.7bn in the black, up 15.5 percent from the previous year. That was due in large part to an 8.8 percent gain to CZK 30.3bn in interest rate charges. “The growth was caused by rising client credit deals and deposits and rising interest rates from the Czech National Bank in 2018 and 2019,” wrote the bank. Although its parent company Erste Group reported an 18 percent fall in net profits to €1.47bn its operating profit rose wrote thanks to its successful Central Europe activities. UniCredit ČR/SR, whose net profit climbed from CZK 9.1bn to CZK 9.9bn, benefited from a 12 percent uptick in deposits to CZK 409m.
