Odeabank Caps Off the First Quarter of 2021 with Growth​

Odeabank continued its growth trend in the first quarter of 2021 despite the market uncertainties brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Odeabank concluded the period with a net profit of 42 million Turkish lira and recorded a 7 percent growth in TRY commercial loans in the first quarter, surpassing the industry average. Odeabank CEO Mert Öncü: “The trust our customers have placed in us has been the driving force behind our first-quarter growth.

Odeabank, Türkiye’s young, dynamic, and innovative bank, has released its financial results for the first quarter of 2021. Leveraging its robust equity structure and strong balance sheet, Odeabank continued to support the economy, achieving a net profit of 42 million Turkish lira in the first quarter of 2021.

Odeabank recorded 41 billion Turkish lira in total assets and 22.3 billion Turkish lira in total gross loans by the end of the first quarter of 2021. Deposits, the primary source of funding for loans, saw a significant year-over-year growth of 26 percent, reaching a total of 27.3 billion Turkish lira. Odeabank outperformed industry averages in 2021 by attaining a total capital adequacy ratio of 20.38 percent and a core capital adequacy ratio of 11.52 percent, thanks to its strong equity structure and efficient asset management.

Thanks to the range of investment funds available to customers, the bank’s fund volume surged to 2.2 billion Turkish lira, with demand deposits making up 15.9 percent of total customer deposits. Last year, Odeabank saw a 50 percent rise in cash TRY commercial loans. Building on this momentum, the bank experienced a doubling of cash TRY commercial loans in Q1 2021 compared to the previous year’s first quarter.

Commenting on the bank’s financial results for the first quarter of 2021, Odeabank CEO Mert Öncü said: “Despite the pandemic-related developments in Türkiye and around the world, we successfully maintained our customer-oriented working strategy in the first quarter. We continued our operations aligned with Türkiye's priorities, placing a stronger emphasis on efficiency and risk management. The trust our customers have placed in us has been the driving force behind our first-quarter growth.”

Mert Öncü: “We aim to become Türkiye’s bank of choice for savings products”

Odeabank CEO Mert Öncü commented on the bank’s financial results for 2021: “Odeabank’s retail banking activities are focused on savings, investments and deposits. By thoroughly understanding customers and their risk and return expectations, we provide products and services that safeguard and grow their savings with a professional international standard approach. We offer customized asset recommendations tailored to our customers’ needs. With the maintaining of tight monetary policy, we expect this year to bring widespread and sustainable growth, particularly in TRY deposits. By leveraging our product diversity, we aim to become Türkiye’s and the region’s bank of choice for savings and investment products.”

Öncü emphasized continued support for foreign trade companies in 2021: “We will support foreign trade throughout the year as we did last year. In the first quarter, we extended a total of 6.2 billion Turkish lira in loans, comprising 3 billion Turkish lira in cash loans and 3.2 billion Turkish lira in non-cash loans, to support the working capital requirements and foreign trade activities of our firms. We will continue to carry out our Commercial Banking activities this year with a focus on TRY cash loans while prioritizing foreign trade and cash management. Odeabank will continue to provide new financing opportunities to better support the real economy in Türkiye. We aim to increase our total volume of imports and exports in foreign trade operations to over $3 billion by the end of the year. We will continue to contribute to our country’s export stride with our projects in the pipeline. Accordingly, we initiated our Foreign Trade and Cash Management Expert hotline early this year to assist new companies interested in exporting their products. During this period, our emphasis will be on companies involved in exporting or specializing in high-technology products. We anticipate the most significant growth in TRY loans, with a goal to enhance the proportion of TRY loans in total loans by the close of 2021. Our commitment to reaching the planned export volume and market share for 2021 remains steadfast.”

“We Anticipate a Balanced Year for the Industry in 2021”

Öncü also discussed recent developments in the Turkish banking industry, stating, “We anticipate balanced growth in 2021, fueled by both domestic and foreign demand. By the end of the first quarter, reduced uncertainty and increased predictability, driven by improved financial conditions and the rollout of vaccination efforts, will restore investor confidence and support economic growth. With the appreciation of the Turkish lira against other currencies since the start of the year, we expect the banking industry to see a 10 to 15 percent rise in total assets, total loans, and total customer deposits in 2021.”