Bank Leumi reports profits up 12% for first 3 months of year

Bank Leumi, one of Israel’s two largest lenders, saw its profit leap almost 12 percent in the first three months of the year as it cashed in on high interest rates paid by mortgage and loan holders.

The profits come while the cost of living continues to rise and households are struggling to make ends meet during the challenging war period.

Leumi’s net income in the January to March quarter rose to NIS 2.40 billion ($646 million), from NIS 2.15 billion ($565 million) in the corresponding period last year.

Net interest income jumped 6.6% in the reported quarter of the year to NIS 4.02 billion ($1.14 billion) from about NIS 3.77 billion ($1.07 billion) during the same period in 2024. Fee income generated NIS 1.02 billion ($290 million) in the first quarter, an increase of 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Net credit to the public amounted to NIS 462.8 billion ($124.5 billion) as of March 31, up 8% from the NIS 428.6 billion ($115.3 billion) recorded a year ago.

Housing loans or mortgages rose 10.4% to NIS 148.3 billion ($39.9 billion) at the end of March, from NIS 134.3 billion ($36.1 billion) year-on-year. Credit to retail customers was up 3.4% in the first quarter and totaled NIS 30.4 billion ($8.2 billion), compared to NIS 29.4 billion ($7.9 billion) a year ago.