By Rogerio Jelmayer
SAO PAULO--Banco Santander Brasil SA (SANB11.BR), the Brazilian
unit of Spanish bank Banco Santander SA (SAN.MC), saw an increase
of 16.6% in its net profit in the second quarter, due to the
combination of a rise in loans and reduction of its provisions
charges.
The bank posted a net profit of 1.68 billion reais ($500
million), up from BRL1.44 billion in the year-ago period.
Santander's loan portfolio expanded 12.4% to BRL254 billion in
the period. The bank's credit expansion was led by an increase in
loans for big companies, which reached BRL106 billion, up 28.7%
from the same period of 2014.
Even with the increase in loans, the bank was able to reduce its
provisions charges in the period as its default rate declined.
The bank's provisions charges dropped around 8.4% to BRL5.5
billion in the first half from the year ago period. The bank did
not provide separate figures for the second quarter. Its default
rate reached 3.2% in the second quarter, down from 4.1% in the
prior year period.
Write to Rogerio Jelmayer at rogerio.jelmayer@wsj.com
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