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Helm Bank USA tripled its profits in the second quarter as it encountered fewer charges from bad loans.

The Miami-based bank earned $1.66 million in the second quarter, up from net income of $544,000 in the first quarter, according to its filing with the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. The biggest improvement came because the bank only took an expense of $1.6 million to reserve for future loan losses. In the previous quarter, it took $2.1 million.

However, Helm Bank’s net interest income declined to $5.4 million in the second quarter from $5.6 million in the first quarter.

The quality of the bank’s loan portfolio registered a modest improvement. As of June 30, Helm Bank had $20.2 million in late or unpaid loans, representing 7.68 percent of its total loans, plus $5.5 million in repossessed property. As of March 31, it had $21.9 million in noncurrent loans, representing 8.26 percent, plus $5.8 million in repossessed property.

Helm Bank’s assets consist of more investment securities than loans, so its amount of bad loans was a relatively small slice of the bank’s total size.

The bank’s $7.3 million reserve for future loan losses covered 36 percent of its noncurrent loans as of June 30.

Helm Bank was the 16th-largest bank chartered in South Florida as of March 31, with $728 million in assets. It was down to $712 million in assets at mid-ear. The bank’s deposits declined to $658 million from $677 million between March and June. Its total loans were virtually unchanged, at $257 million.

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