Affin Holdings Q4 net profit surges to RM171.4mil

Affin said in a stock exchange filing that both parties were not able to finalise the transaction documents for the sale of the stake in time and in accordance with the central bank

PETALING JAYA: Affin Holdings Bhd’s net profit for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 was up by 76% to RM171.4mil from a year ago propelled by the robust performance of its commercial banking unit, lower allowance for loan impairment and higher net income.

This was achieved on the back of a higher revenue of RM527.8mil against RM464.8mil in the corresponding quarter in 2015.

For the full year, Affin’s net profit also jumped to RM564mil from RM369.3mil in financial year 2015 (FY15).

Revenue for FY16 stood at RM1.94bil, up from RM1.8bil in FY15.

Earnings per share was at 29.03 sen from 19.01 sen per share previously. It will declare a dividend at a later date. After-tax return on equity and after-tax return on assets were at 6.65% and 0.83%, respectively, for the year under review.

“Affin’s commercial banking arm continued to be a key contributor to the group’s overall performance.

“Affin Bank Bhd successfully registered a higher pre-tax profit of RM599.9mil for the fiscal year compared with the RM457.5mil recorded in 2015.

“This is driven by a lower allowance for loan impairment as well as higher net income. Its wholly owned subsidiary Affin Islamic Bank Bhd’s pre-tax profit improved by 24.6% to RM143.4mil compared with the RM113.6mil recorded in 2015,” it said in a statement yesterday.

Affin’s gross impaired loan ratio of 1.67% as at Dec 31, 2016 reflected a decrease of 23 basis points from 2015,

Meanwhile, Affin Hwang Investment Bank, also known as Affin Hwang Capital, reported an improved pre-provision operating profit of RM131.6mil that was mainly due to a 7.9% improvement in net income from RM509.1mil to RM549.1mil.

“This was driven primarily by an 8.2% increase in fee income from RM353.1mil to RM382.2mil,” it said.

Going forward, as Affin Hwang Capital consolidates and rationalises its business operations subsequent to the merger of businesses between the Affin Investment Bank Bhd group and HwangDBS Investment Bank Bhd group, it continues to foster and establish strategic partnerships in the region for cross-border collaboration.

Affin’s jointly controlled entity, AXA Affin Life Insurance Bhd, meanwhile, recorded a lower pre-tax loss of RM20.2mil for the financial year under review, an improvement from last year’s pre-tax loss of RM28.4mil.

AXA Affin General Insurance Bhd posted a substantially improved pre-tax profit of RM181.2mil as compared with RM114.8mil in the previous financial year.