UOB Malaysia’s 2021 net profit up 12.2 per cent to RM1.14 billion
Capital, liquidity and funding positions remained strong while the Bank supported customers throughout the pandemic
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 10 May 2022 – UOB Malaysia recorded a 12.2 per cent increase in net profit to RM1.14 billion in 2021 on higher operating income and lower total allowance for expected credit losses.
UOB Malaysia’s total operating income grew 4.3 per cent to RM3.35 billion, on the back of stronger net interest income and higher net income from the Islamic Banking business. Total allowances for expected credit losses was 17.7 per cent or RM103.2 million lower compared with the previous year. The decrease was largely due to lower expected credit losses on loans, advances, financing and other financial assets for non-impaired assets.
While prudently managing its discretionary expenses, UOB Malaysia continued to invest in technology infrastructure in 2021 to support its business growth, which resulted in a 5.7 per cent increase in total operating expenses to RM1.36 billion.
Maintaining strong capital, liquidity and funding positions while supporting customers during the pandemic
Gross loans, advances and financing base rose 2.9 per cent to RM90.0 billion and non-bank deposits increased 3.7 per cent to RM97.1 billion in 2021. Amid a challenging environment, Wholesale Banking loans and financing grew steadily, riding on the Bank’s Islamic banking capabilities as well as its regional networks. The Bank was the second largest loan bookrunner in Malaysia1 in 2021. In addition, the total foreign direct investment (FDI) transactions facilitated by the Bank increased by close to 20 per cent, compared with the year before. These flows included new investments from Greater China, ASEAN, South Korea and the United States.
Meanwhile, a rebound in consumer spending and savings coupled with the Bank’s efforts to make banking simpler and smarter for its customers boosted UOB Malaysia’s retail banking business. This includes the introduction of the digital account opening capability on the Bank's all-in-one mobile banking app, UOB Mighty that enables customers to open a personal bank account anytime, anywhere without having to visit a branch.
On the sustainability front, UOB Malaysia achieved another milestone with the launch of the U-Energy programme2. As the first integrated financing platform in Asia, the programme is designed to support businesses and home owners to retrofit their buildings with energy efficient features to cut energy usage. U-Energy complements the Bank’s U-Solar programme, launched in 2019, to provide Malaysians with flexible financing solutions to switch to renewable sources and do their part to fight climate change.
The Bank continued to maintain a strong capital base with its Common Equity Tier 1 ratio at 17.7 per cent and Total Capital ratio at 20.5 per cent. Its liquidity and funding positions also remained robust with its liquidity coverage ratio and net stable funding ratio well above the minimum regulatory requirements.
Throughout the pandemic, UOB Malaysia continued to support its customers, especially individuals, micro-enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) through its COVID-19 Relief Assistance Programme. From March 2020 to December 2021, the Programme has benefitted more than 34,000 individual, micro-enterprise and SME customers. The relief assistance extended involved more than RM23 billion loans and financing, and has helped customers overcome the financial impact caused by the prolonged movement restrictions.
Ms Ng Wei Wei, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), UOB Malaysia, said, "Amid the volatile operating environment in 2021, we delivered a commendable performance, growing our operating income and net profit. Through prudent risk management and disciplined business approach, we kept our balance sheet robust while continuing to capture opportunities and grow market share."
"Going forward, we remain focused on enhancing our technology infrastructure to drive innovation and performance. We will also continue to support our customers to capitalise on ASEAN's structural growth trends, as well as to transition to sustainability through our suites of financing solutions. In 2021, our U-Solar helped facilitate the generation of almost 90.1 gigawatt hours of solar power in Malaysia, which translates to greenhouse gas reduction of 58.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide, equivalent to almost 972,507 tree seedlings grown for 10 years and about 12,791 cars taken off the road for a year."
UOB Malaysia’s commitment to Malaysia as its recovery builds momentum
Ms Ng added that Malaysia’s recovery is gaining momentum and she expects a strong rebound in economic growth.
"We are confident of Malaysia’s development, which is underscored by our continued investment to deepen our presence in the country and to develop our people. Our commitment is further reaffirmed by our recent acquisition of Citigroup’s consumer banking business in Malaysia3, subject to regulatory approval, and investment in our new headquarters in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. UOB Malaysia has been supporting Malaysia’s growth for more than 70 years and we will continue to stand by our customers and the community for many more decades to come."
UOB Malaysia extends its deepest appreciation to Mr Wong Kim Choong who stepped down as its CEO on 30 April 2022. His clear vision and years of capable leadership has helped the Bank grow to be the largest foreign bank in the country today, its strongest position yet. Mr Wong will continue to contribute to the Bank’s development through his new role as Senior Adviser on the Citi consumer banking acquisition4.
UOB Malaysia’s Annual Report 2021 is available at https://www.uob.com.my/stakeholders/annual/annual.page
1 Based on the Malaysia Loans (Bookrunner) in Bloomberg FY2021 League Table ranking from 1 January to 31 December 2021.
2 Please see the news release, ‘UOB Malaysia launches U-Energy, Asia’s first integrated financing platform to drive energy efficiency’, 8 December 2021.
3 Please see UOB’s news release: 'UOB Group to Acquire Citigroup’s Consumer Business in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam’, 14 January 2022.
4 Please see news release: ‘UOB Malaysia appoints Ng Wei Wei as its first female CEO’, 18 April 2022.