Sy-led Chinabank also booked record H1 profits
Another Sy family-led bank booked record earnings in the first half of the year on stronger demand for consumer loans.
China Banking Corp. on Thursday said its net income in the January to June period inched up by 6 percent to P11.4 billion as net interest income expanded by a fifth to P30.4 billion.
Gross loans likewise increased by 10 percent to P817 billion, buoyed by a 25-percent growth in consumer loans.
Despite the loan growth, Chinabank pointed out that credit quality improved, with nonperforming loan ratio easing to 1.9 percent from 2.2 percent previously.
Meanwhile, deposits grew by 14 percent to P1.3 trillion.
“The continued growth of our core lending and deposit-taking businesses, combined with stable asset credit quality and controlled operating costs, allowed us to register our highest first half net income to date, solidifying our position as one of the top four banks in the country,” Chinabank president and CEO Romeo Uyan Jr. said in a statement.
As of end-June, Chinabank’s total assets were up 12 percent to P1.5 trillion.
The bank’s first semester performance resulted in a return on equity of 15.1 percent against 15.9 percent in the same period last year.
Chinabank is the second listed Sy family-led bank to report record-high earnings in the first semester after BDO Unibank Inc. as the banking sector looks forward to another banner year amid high demand from clients once interest rates decline.
BDO, the country’s largest bank in terms of assets, broke the record for the largest firsthalf net income in Philippine corporate history at P39.4 billion, up by 12 percent.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is expected to cut interest rates by this month to end nearly four years of upward rate adjustments.
Earlier, China Bank Savings (CBS), Chinabank’s thrift banking arm, also reported record profit in the first half to P1 billion, up by 18 percent.
This brings CBS closer to shattering its full-year record earnings of P1.8 billion.
