Tech, talent and product diversification drive ‘strong’ BOV performance in Q3 2025

Bank of Valletta plc (BOV) Chairman Gordon Cordina has highlighted the bank’s sustained performance during the first nine months of 2025, attributing the results to disciplined execution of strategy and targeted investments in technology, talent, and product diversification.

He also acknowledged the challenges presented by geopolitical uncertainty, interest rate movements by the European Central Bank, and broader international economic developments.

This follows the publication of the group’s financial results for the first nine months of 2025.

Dr Cordina earmarked the bank’s as a “testament to our commitment to sustained growth, prudent risk management, capital optimisation and value creation for our shareholders.”

Highlighting the bank’s strategic initiatives, Dr Cordina pointed to BOV’s launch of Malta’s first regulated share buy-back programme in August, designed to enhance market liquidity, provide an orderly mechanism for shareholders, and reinforce long-term value.

The bank also rolled out a comprehensive range of general insurance products in partnership with Mapfre Middlesea and received regulatory approval from the MFSA for an Unsecured Euro Medium Term Bond Programme of up to €325 million, aimed at strengthening BOV’s capital structure and regulatory resilience.

CEO Kenneth Farrugia echoed the Chairman’s sentiments, noting that the bank continues to deliver strong performance across its core business. “I am pleased to note the strength of our core business, the expansion of our balance sheet, an enhanced asset quality and robust capital and liquidity positions,” he said.

Mr Farrugia highlighted that strong customer deposits reflect market confidence and that BOV’s strategic liquidity redeployment into longer-term interest-bearing assets has reinforced resilient income flows, even amid a declining interest rate environment.

“Our efforts to diversify, as highlighted by the Chairman, aree helping the Group maintain resilient income flows, even amid a declining interest rate environment,” he said.

The CEO also underlined the bank’s ongoing investment in talent and technology to drive operational efficiency and improve the customer experience. “We continue to deliver on our 2024–2026 strategy with stable momentum, advancing our digital transformation program to provide enhanced convenience and financial agility for our customers,” Mr Farrugia concluded.

BOV posted a profit before tax of €192.1 million for the first nine months of 2025, reflecting strong operating income. While profitability was lower than the same period in 2024 (€223.7 million), the result aligns with expectations and follows the bank’s ongoing investment in technology, talent and operational transformation.

Operating income for the nine months amounted to €365.1 million, up 1.6 per cent from the same period in 2024, with an operating profit of €185 million, supported by positive contributions from both net interest income and net fee and commission income.

The group’s total assets surpassed €16 billion during the period, representing nearly one billion euros in growth compared to the start of the year, “driven by strong lending activity, sustained inflow in customer deposits and strategic investments in high-quality financial instruments.”