CIMB Thai back in the black for FY17

> Bank posts 385 million baht net profit, thanks to higher income and lower provisions

PETALING JAYA: CIMB Thai Bank PCL swung to the black registering a net profit of 384.9 million baht (RM47.6 million) for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2017 against a net loss of 629.5 million baht (RM77.8 million) in 2016.

The group said in a statement that it was driven by a 1.8% growth in operating income and a 19.5% drop in provisions, while other operating expenses rose slightly by 2.6%.

The expansion in operating income to 26.6 million baht was supported by the increase in net fee and service income on the back of improvements in mutual funds, corporate finance and hire-purchase fees as well as the increase in net interest income

CIMB Thai’s cost-to-income ratio increased to 57.9% in 2017 compared with 57.4% in 2016. However, excluding one-off expenses related to business rationalisation, the cost-to-income ratio would have improved to 56.9% in 2017.

Its net interest margin (NIM) over earning assets stood at 3.89% in 2017 against 3.77% from 2016, as a result of more efficient funding cost management.

As at Dec 31, 2017, CIMB Thai’s total gross loans stood at 213 billion baht, an increase of 3.2% from a year ago.

Its gross non-performing loans (NPL) stood at 10.7 billion baht, with a lower equivalent gross NPL ratio of 4.8% compared with 6.1% as at Dec 31, 2016, thanks to the sale of NPLs in 2017, more efficient risk management policies and improved asset quality management and loan collection processes.

CIMB Thai’s loan loss coverage ratio increased to 93.2% from 77.3% end-2016. As at end-December 2017, its total provisions stood at 9.9 billion baht, showing an excess of 3.7 billion baht over Bank of Thailand’s reserve requirements.

Total consolidated capital funds, meanwhile, stood at 40.7 billion baht as at end-2017. Bank of International Settlementratio stood at 17%, 12.9% of which comprised Tier-1-capital.