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Resurs Bank Interim Report January-June 2020

Stable period in a turbulent business environment” Nils Carlsson, CEO Resurs Bank AB
 

1 January—30 June 2020*

  • Lending to the public rose 2% to SEK 30,853 million, a 6% increase in constant currencies
  • Operating income increased 2% to SEK 1,750 million
  • Operating profit before credit losses rose 4% to SEK1,083 million
  • Operating profit fell 16% to SEK 618 million
  • C/I before credit losses was 38.1% (39.3%)
  • The credit loss ratio was 3.0% (2.1%), as a technical effect of historically high growth in lending and
    the extra credit provision of SEK 75 million that was made in the first quarter.
 

Statement by the CEO

Digitisation has fundamentally changed how we interact, communicate and consume, with the COVID-19 situation further accelerating this trend in society. Digital advances are bringing new customer behaviours and business models whereby agile and technologically innovative companies such as Resurs are strengthening their competitiveness by continuously making themselves relevant to customers of both today and tomorrow. We create value for our retail finance partners by combining our long and solid experience of retail and consumer credit loans with digitisation and AI, and thus ensuring reliable credit assessments and a positive customer experience. This is a strength that, particularly in this challenging period, proved its value through our ability to help our retail finance partners in every way to adapt their business models to the prevailing circumstances. Despite a highly turbulent market, we could also see that several industries performed well during the period.

A turbulent first period ended with gradual recovery
The period of lockdown across the Nordics and a rapidly declining economy naturally had an effect on Resurs’s business. At the same time, our business model, with its stable core of retail finance, once again demonstrated its unique flexibility and adaptability by counterbalancing and compensating for the fluctuating conditions in the Nordic markets and various industries. It made us agile when we had to slow down and then accelerate in line with the gradual recovery and made a strong contribution to a stable first period. Our lending increased
2 per cent compared with the same period in 2019 to SEK 30,853 million, up 6 per cent in constant currencies. Operating profit before credit losses increased 4 per cent to SEK 1,083 million. Credit losses amounted to 3.0 per cent, as a technical effect of historically high growth in lending. The extra credit provisions of SEK 35 million made in the second half of
2019 and of SEK 75 million in the first period of 2020 were based on our conservative credit model. To reduce risks in new lending, continuous measures were taken, such as adjustments to credit assessments, which had a negative effect on lending growth.

Varying impact and new strategic partnership
The effects of the economic climate and COVID-19 on our three business segments varied considerably. In Payment Solutions, the overall effects were relatively small since the industries that were directly impacted by a sharp decline in sales were offset by other industries that in contrast noted normal or higher demand. During the period, Resurs entered into a strategic partnership with Gekås Ullared, under which we were trusted to drive the next step of their digitisation journey by launching a new concept for card and payment solutions in the first period of 2021. The focus of the partnership is also to work with more advanced CRM to tailor customer communication, with the aim of strengthening both customer relationships and the brand. The Consumer Loans market generally noted stable demand. As we previously reported, the Norwegian market remained challenging with a decline in activity, which had a negative effect on the trend in lending.

Key symbiosis of long-term approach, flexibility and adaptability
Over our 40 years as a niche bank, we have overcome a number of recessions and financial crises. Although the future economic climate remains difficult to assess, we know that our business model with its diversity in terms of both markets and industries provides us with the necessary stability and strength to constructively and flexibly meet these challenges here and now. Another strength is our ability to apply a long-term and sustainable approach to everything we do. Resurs’s core business in the form of loans and credits is based on sustainable credit lending in which a meticulous credit process ensures both customers’ capacity to meet their commitments and a basis for pricing. Our responsibility includes creating sustainable business for all parties, which is a prerequisite for both growth and profitability and for earning the confidence of the market.

Resurs’s financial and capital positions are strong and together with the measures we have taken we are well-equipped to continue on our journey of growth.

Nils Carlsson, CEO Resurs Bank AB

For additional information, please contact:
Nils Carlsson, CEO, nils.carlsson@resurs.se; +46 42 382000
Jonas Olin, CFO & Head of IR, jonas.olin@resurs.se; +46 42 382000
Christina Jungvid Ohlsson, IR Officer, christina.jungvidohlsson@resurs.se; +46 707 816558


About Resurs Bank
Resurs is a Nordic niche bank that offers leading payment and financing solutions for the retail industry and its customers. We help companies and private individuals with lending, saving and payments. With more than 40 years of experience in the retail sector, we make shopping online and in stores quick, easy and secure. We focus on the customer experience and make good things happen and the hard feel easier. We have a customer base of about 6 million private customers and 727 employees in the Nordics. When we use the term “Group” in this report, we are referring to the Resurs Bank Group.

* Certain performance measures provided in this section have not been prepared in accordance with IFRS or the capital adequacy rules, meaning that they are alternative performance measures. Calculations and reconciliation against information in the financial statements of these performance measures are provided on the website under “Financial reports.” Definitions of performance measures are provided on page 25. In this section, changes and comparative figures refer to the same period in the preceding year. This applies to all other sections of text in this interim report, profit/loss items and cash flow that are compared with the same period in the preceding year. The exception is for financial position for which the comparative figure refers to 31 December 2019.

This information is information that Resurs Bank AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication at 07.30 CET on 21 July 2020