In the first nine months of this year, a drop was recorded in the standard indicators of profitability – return on equity (ROE) and return on assets (ROA). A drop in the interest rate margin due to growing costs of sources of funding was recorded, and a new wave of the crisis led to further deterioration of the quality of assets.

In the sense of trends and expectations for 2013, last year’s conclusions could be repeated which, interestingly, were very similar to the conclusions for 2010 and 2011. There is continuity of the crisis through which the banks are passing, fortunately, unscathed in the sense of liquidity and stability, which is due to the high levels of engaged capital.

The costs of regulation have no critical role in determining profits, and the banks are very well capitalized, which has allowed them to sail through the crisis without greater shocks, with the exception of the now constant pressure on the deterioration of assets and declining profitability.