Dutch cooperative Rabobank on Thursday said its net profit fell by more than a quarter in the first half of 2022, driven by its withdrawal from Russia and rising costs of anti-money laundering operations.
Rabobank, one of three dominant banks in the Netherlands, reported a net profit of 1.57 billion euros ($1.61 billion) over the first six months of the year, down from 2.16 billion a year before.
The lender in March decided to end all its activities in Russia because of the war in Ukraine, which led to total impairment charges of 42 million euros in the first half of the year.
Early this year, Rabobank had a total exposure of around 400 million euros in Russia, where its subsidiary DLL was active in leasing equipment in the agriculture sector.
Total income in the first half of 2022 decreased 3% despite rising interest rates, while expenses rose 5% as the bank needed to hire more staff to comply with stronger demands for customer due diligence.
Rabo, late last year, said it could face a fine from the Dutch central bank if it did not improve efforts to prevent money laundering through its accounts by the end of 2023.
The bank on Thursday said it had asked for an extension of this deadline as it struggled to find enough staff to comply with the central bank's demands.
