Germany's second-largest lender Commerzbank said on Wednesday its profits increased in the second quarter as rising interest rates boosted revenues.

The banking group booked a net profit of €470 million for the period between April and June, above the expectations of analysts surveyed by FactSet who forecast a figure just under €400 million.

Commerzbank made a net loss of €527 million in the same period last year, a figure pulled down by a €500 million restructuring charge.

Revenues at Commerzbank rose to €2.4 billion in the second quarter, up 30 per cent on a year. 

Revenues at Commerzbank rose to €2.4 billion in the second quarter, up 30% on a year

The improvement was driven by "strong customer business and rising interest rates", Commerzbank said in a statement. 

Central banks have been raising interest rates to fight soaring inflation, with the European Central Bank hiking its rates for the first time in over a decade at the end of July.

The increase in revenues was "above our expectations", Commerzbank CEO Manfred Knof said in a statement.

Since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February, Commerzbank had reduced its net exposure to Russia by 45 per cent to €1 billion.

As of the end of June, Commerzbank had made a total of €564 million in risk provisions to guard against further fallout from the conflict and "secondary effects such as the interruption of supply chains or high energy prices".

The bank stuck to its outlook for the year, which saw revenues rising year-on-year on the back of higher interest rates.

The outlook did not take account of the risk of "severe deterioration of the economic environment, for instance due to a natural gas shortage".

Russia has dwindled supplies of the fuel to Europe amid tensions over the West's support for Ukraine.