Despite a slight decline in revenues, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) expenses also dropped at a steeper rate, leading to the central bank’s more than double net income in the first three months of the year.

Data from the BSP showed that the central bank’s net income jumped by 122.1 percent to ₱40.2 billion in January to March this year from ₱18.1 billion in the same quarter a year ago.

During the quarter, the BSP’s revenues slightly declined to ₱67 billion from ₱67.1 billion in the same quarter a year ago. Meanwhile, expenses dropped at a slightly steeper rate at 3.2 percent to ₱50.8 billion from ₱52.5 billion.

For the January-to-March period, the central bank’s interest income climbed by 12.7 percent to ₱60.4 billion from the previous year’s ₱53.6 billion last year. Meanwhile, miscellaneous income jumped by 51.1 percent to ₱13.5 billion from ₱6.6 billion in the same period last year.

Interest income on international reserves, domestic securities, and miscellaneous income were the sources of the BSP revenues. Miscellaneous income includes trading gains or losses, fees, penalties, and other forms of operating income.

As for its spending, BSP’s interest expenses only reached ₱35.4 billion as of end-March, a 17.1-percent drop from ₱42.7 billion a year earlier.

Meanwhile, other expenses jumped by 58.1 percent from ₱9.8 billion in the first quarter last year to ₱15.5 billion.

Meanwhile, BSP’s foreign exchange (FX) gains jumped nearly seven times to ₱24 billion from ₱3.5 billion in the same quarter last year. These FX gains come from fluctuations in currency exchange rates related to the BSP’s foreign currency transactions.

As of end-March, the BSP’s total assets stood at ₱7.79 trillion, up 2.9 percent from ₱7.57 trillion in 2024. The increase was mainly driven by higher international reserves, partly offset by a decline in domestic securities to ₱1.12 trillion from ₱1.17 trillion.

Meanwhile, the BSP’s total liabilities increased by 1.4 percent to ₱7.52 trillion, from ₱7.42 trillion a year earlier. This was driven by higher currency in circulation, domestic bills payable, and the revaluation of foreign currency accounts.

As of end-March, the BSP’s net worth rose by 72.5 percent to ₱271.5 billion from ₱157.4 billion in the same period last year. The increase was largely driven by surplus reserves, which more than tripled to ₱211.5 billion from ₱97.4 billion a year earlier. The BSP’s capital, meanwhile, remains at ₱60 billion.