KUALA LUMPUR: OCBC Bank (Malaysia) Bhd says it has posted its best ever net profit, buoyed by a strong growth in total income.
OCBC Malaysia's net profit rose 17 per cent to RM954 million in the financial year ended December 31 2019, while pre-tax profit edged up 12 per cent to RM1.23 billion.
The increase was underpinned by a strong nine per cent growth in total income, OCBC Malaysia said in a statement today.
This was derived largely from higher gains on disposal of financial investments along with net interest income sustained at the same level as in the financial year 2018 despite a 25 basis points (bp) cut in the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) and, correspondingly, the bank's base and base lending/financing rates in 2019.
After deducting proposed dividends, OCBC Malaysia said it remained well capitalised with Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio of 14.38 per cent, Tier 1 capital ratio of 15.27 per cent and total capital ratio of 17.83 per cent, sufficient to withstand the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Chief Executive Officer Datuk Ong Eng Bin said he was pleased with the performance despite a challenging year.
"Moving into 2020 and fully cognisant of the implications of Covid-19, we continue to support our customers through the pandemic crisis via the combined strength of our conventional and Islamic banking franchise as well as in the areas of managing risks, maximising collaboration within business units and growing our wealth products platform.
"We continue to invest in digital capabilities to widen our offerings and improve customer experience to meet the surge in demand for online services; this disruption in customer banking behaviour will likely have a lasting impact as customers get used to and become more comfortable with a different way of banking from the comforts of their home and workplace."
Ong said its Islamic banking arm OCBC Al-Amin would look to expand its wealth management business as well as build its financing book for corporates and SMEs, with particular attention to Value Based Intermediation.