Public Bank’s Teh celebrates birthday with promise of nice dividend present

KUALA LUMPUR: Shareholders gave a lot of applause and sang “Happy Birthday” to Public Bank chairman Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow at the group's AGM yesterday where he set a medium-term target of achieving a net return on equity (ROE) of above 26% and an impaired loan ratio of below 1% as he believes the banking sector in Malaysia would be able to maintain its profitability despite uncertainty in the global markets.

Teh, in his address to shareholders at the bank's 45th AGM yesterday, said its joint venture with ING to provide family takaful business would add to the group's fee-based income once operations start in the first half of this year and the group would open four new branches in Vietnam and one in Laos this year.