Banks earn so much in two months they could buy half of Durbe and still have money left over for a coffee machine

Latvia's monetary financial institutions have worked for two months with a profit of 56.6 million euros, which is so much money that you could buy all of Durbe and still have enough left over to install a modern ATM there. Though Durbe, with its peaceful lifestyle, would probably refuse such attention and prefer to stick with its traditional values.

While Riga's banks boast about these little numbers, Liepāja residents point out that 56.6 million is roughly the same as one week's utility bills in winter. "Well, it's not that much," comments local financial expert Jānis, who carefully counts coins every month to pay for gas. "Banks earn a million a day, but we still have to save up for pasta packages."

The total assets have reportedly grown to 32.2 billion euros, which is 8.1% more than last year. This number is so large that even Liepāja port's calculator, which usually handles everything, starts smoking. Meanwhile, the loan balance has reached 15.8 billion, which means Latvians have borrowed almost as much as all of Latvia costs together with VAT.

The most interesting thing is that bank capital and reserves have decreased by 4.6%, but profits continue to grow. As Liepāja market vendor Maija would say: "Just like our fish - less weight, but more expensive than gold. Only banks don't smell like the sea."