Bank of Valletta posted a profit before tax of €119.8 million for the first half of 2026, covering the six months to 30th June, as the Maltese lender reported total assets of €17.6 billion and operating income of €251.3 million.

The figure falls short of the €135.1 million recorded in the same period last year, though BOV Chairman Gordon Cordina was clear that the gap reflects a set of specific, largely non-recurring factors rather than any weakness in the bank’s underlying performance. Those factors included impairment charges recognised in the first half of 2026 against impairment reversals booked in the comparable period, negative fair value movements on a limited portion of the investment portfolio and the absence of one-off items that had lifted the 2025 first-half result. Cordina described the period as a demonstration of the resilience of BOV’s business model and the strength of the foundations built in recent years.

On the balance sheet, customer deposits grew to €14.5 billion and net loans and advances to customers reached €8.6 billion. The Board declared an interim cash ordinary dividend of €0.0805 gross per share, amounting to €51.6 million in total, with a net dividend of €0.0523 per share representing €33.6 million to be distributed to shareholders.

A standout moment in the period was the issuance of €300 million in Senior Preferred Notes under the Group’s Euro Medium Term Note Programme – the largest bond issuance in BOV’s history. The transaction drew strong demand from international institutional investors, reinforcing the bank’s access to international capital markets.

Chief Executive Kenneth Farrugia struck a confident tone on the outlook, welcoming an increasingly competitive domestic banking environment and pointing to BOV’s leading market position across deposits and lending, robust capital and liquidity buffers and strengthening external credit ratings as key advantages heading into the second half. His stated priorities include responsible lending growth, preserving asset quality and continued investment in technology, cybersecurity, data infrastructure and customer experience.

The bank also confirmed it is preparing for its next strategic cycle, framed as an evolution of its current direction rather than a departure from it. The forthcoming strategy is expected to focus on technology and operational resilience, workforce development and deepening customer relationships to generate long-term value.