StanChart H1 profit rises 34pc
HONG KONG/LONDON: Standard Chartered Plc (StanChart) reported a 34 per cent rise in pretax profit for the six months to June and issued an interim dividend, as the Asia-focused lender continued to grow its revenue after years of restructuring.
StanChart’s profit growth over the past few quarters and the return to dividends this year are seen by investors as signs the sweeping restructuring measures implemented by chief executive officer Bill Winters, when he joined the bank in 2015, were show promise.
Pre-tax profit for StanChart, which focuses on Asia, Africa and the Middle East, rose to US$2.35 billion (RM9.54 billion) in the first half of the year, from US$1.75 billion in the same period last year, said the lender in a regulatory filing yesterday.
The bank said its return on equity (ROE), an important measure of profitability, was 6.7 per cent.
The appreciation in the banks ROE “reinforces our confidence that we will exceed eight per cent in the medium term and validates our decision to resume an interim dividend”, said Winters.
The lender issued an interim dividend of six cents a share.
StanChart which gets most its earnings from Asia, saw its retail banking income rise nine per cent on strong performances in its Greater China, North Asia, Asean and South Asia divisions, mainly in Hong Kong and Singapore.
The multinational banking and financial services company said in June it planned to apply for a “virtual banking” licence in Hong Kong, joining global banks in the push to attract younger customers with digital offerings.
The virtual banking platforms will have no physical branches and are expected to mainly offer retail banking services.
Like its international peers around the world, banks in Asia, mainly in major hubs including Hong Kong and Singapore, have been boosting investments in Internet and mobile banking services in the battle to lure techsavvy students and young professionals.