KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd's (BIMB) net profit fell 5.42 per cent to RM534.31 million in the financial year ended December 31, 2021(FY21) from RM564.95 million a year ago.
The bank's revenue fell 96.8 per cent to RM3.17 billion from RM3.34 billion in FY20.
BIMB said it recorded a profit before zakat and taxation (PBZT) of RM704.2 million for FY21 from RM728.21 million, a decline of 3.3 per cent.
This was mainly due to a lower non-fund-based income and higher operating expenses, BIMB said in a statement today.
The bank said its non-fund-based income dropped by RM175.5 million mainly due to lower investment income, notably lower net gain from the sale of investment papers.
This was offset by a lower modification loss arising from the financing moratorium granted to customers.
BIMB recognised RM48.9 million modification loss in the period under review compared to RM136.4 million in the previous year.
The bank's FY21 performance translates to earning per share (EPS) of 21.87 sen and return on equity (ROE) of 8.4 per cent (after tax and zakat).
For the fourth quarter (Q4), BIMB's net profit fell 55.06 per cent to RM79.64 million from RM177.21 million a year ago, while revenue rose 716.3 per cent to RM816.28 million from RM758.81 million previously.
The bank reported a PBZT of RM76.4 million, which was lower than Q4 2020 (RM201.9 million), mainly due to higher impairment provision of financing and advances during the quarter.
BIMB's gross impaired financing ratio of 0.96 per cent as of December 31 2021 remained better than the industry average of 1.44 per cent.
As of December 31, 2021, the bank's total capital ratio remained strong at 18.6 per cent, providing ample buffer for loss absorption and business growth.
Its total assets grew by 7.4 per cent to stand at RM80.2 billion at the end of December 31, 2021, while net assets per share stood at RM3.08.
Gross financing grew by 6.5 per cent to RM59.2 billion, while customer deposits and investment accounts stood at RM67.8 billion with an increase of RM4.3 billion or 6.8 per cent.
BIMB group chief executive officer Mohd Muazzam Mohamed said the reopening of Malaysia's economy in Q3 2021 had shown a positive impact on the bank's asset quality, proven by the steep decline in its total accounts under the repayment assistance.
In terms of its retail customers, Muazzam said there had been minimal demand for Financial Management and Resilience Programme (URUS).
"However, the group will continue to offer various types of financial aid to support the different needs of our customers," he said.
On its prospects, Mohd Muazzam said that despite the continued challenging environment, Bank Islam remained committed to strengthening its balance sheet, upholding its strong asset quality, and enhancing cost efficiencies further.
"While embracing changes stemming from the pandemic, the bank will continue its pursuit of digital transformation to strengthen long-term business growth," he added.