HLB Q3 profit 14% higher

Fuda: ‘We remain committed in delivering sustainable business growth, further augmented by the preservation of asset quality with still one of the lowest gross impaired loans ratio of 0.88 in the industry and solid loan impairment coverage ratio of 106.’

PETALING JAYA: Hong Leong Bank Bhd (HLB), Malaysia’s fourth largest bank by assets, posted a 14% jump in net profit to RM569.5mil for the third quarter ended March 31 compared to the same quarter a year ago on the back of higher net income.

The banking arm of Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd (HLFG) said in a stock exchange filing that revenue for the quarter under review rose 12% to RM1.12bil.

It added that the increase in net profit was mitigated by lower writeback of impairment losses on financial investments. Cumulatively for the nine-month period, the bank posted a 24% surge in net profit to RM1.66bil compared to the same period of a year ago.

Revenue for the period under review increased by 10% to RM3.4bil.

The bank’s managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) Domenic Fuda said that during the period, the financial performance was supported by improved revenue growth as well as improvements in margins and efficiency.

“We remain committed in delivering sustainable business growth, further augmented by the preservation of asset quality with still one of the lowest gross impaired loans ratio of 0.88% in the industry and solid loan impairment coverage ratio of 106%.

“Going forward, protection of our business franchise and profitability will remain our key priority,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, in a separate filing, HLFG recorded a 33% jump in net profit to RM418.7mil on higher net interest, non-interest and Islamic banking income. Revenue for the quarter rose 19.5% to RM1.22bil. Net profit for the nine-month period was up at RM1.25bil compared to RM965.4mil in the corresponding nine-month period. Revenue for the period increased to RM3.76bil from RM3.34bil.

HLFG president and CEO Tan Kong Khoon said the company’s business growth remains intact and that the core businesses continued to show strong credit and liquidity risk metrics.

“We will continue to execute our business strategies in tandem with our digital plans to build sustainable long-term value for our shareholders,” he said in a statement.

HLFG declared a dividend of 25 sen per share for the third quarter.