Net Profit Increased 18%, Ranked High among Listed PRC Banks
Hong Kong, Aug 23, 2014 - (ACN Newswire) - Bank of Chongqing Co. Ltd. (the "Bank" or "Bank of Chongqing", Stock Code: 1963) is pleased to announce the unaudited interim results (the "Interim Results") of the Bank for the six months ended June 30, 2014 (the "Reporting Period").
Benefiting from the stable growth in interest-earning assets, the Bank recorded a net profit of RMB1,666.56 million, an increase of 18.1% compared to that in the same period last year during the Reporting Period, which ranked high among PRC listed banks. The Bank's performance not only delivered sound returns to its shareholders and investors, but also laid down a solid foundation for its sustainable development.
As at June 30, 2014, the Bank recorded a stable and sound growth in total assets, representing an increase of 9.4% from those at the end of 2013, reaching RMB226,176.14 million. The Bank adhered to prudent and sustainable principles for credit management and risk control, and rationally maintained a reasonable level of aggregate credit amount and lending pace, based on regional and macroeconomic environment. As a result, net loans and advances to customers grew by 9.9% compared to those at the end of 2013 to RMB97,434.76 million, while the non-performing loan ratio remained low at 0.54%, which was relatively low compared to its listed peers.
While striving for stable growth in service network and business volume, the Bank remained customer-oriented by accelerating its business transformation and upgrading to keep abreast of customers' increasing demand for financial assets diversification, and professional management of deposits. The Bank adopted an innovative approach in deposit management and optimized its pricing practice to meet the requirements for the mercerization of deposit interest rates. For the first half of 2014, the amount of customer deposits increased by RMB19,201.16 million to RMB168,002.21 million, representing an increase of 12.9% from those at the end of 2013, and providing a stable source of funding for the rapid growth of the Bank's credit, inter-bank and other intermediate businesses. While the income from its principal business kept stable increase, the Bank strictly controlled costs and expenses, resulting in a deduction of 1.25 percentage points in the cost-to-income ratio to 26.18%, compared to that in the same period last year.
As at June 30, 2014, the Bank's capital adequacy ratio and core capital adequacy ratio were 12.09% and 10.53%, respectively, which not only provided an adequate reserve for the furtherance of the Bank's asset size and business transformation, but also fulfilled the latest regulatory requirements on capital adequacy ratio applicable to the PRC banking industry.
Looking forward into the second half of 2014, Bank of Chongqing will further enhance its operation and management standards, advance its internal governance system reform and improve its product structure and service channels while continuing to push forward its business transformation. The Bank will also strive for a breakthrough in business development in areas such as consumer credit and asset management, and actively explore and build an efficient Internet banking platform to provide customers with more comprehensive financial products and financial services.
Besides, the Bank will strengthen customized operation and service standards in cutting-edge business areas, including its small and micro enterprise banking business, corporate banking business, personal banking business and inter-bank financing business, so as to strengthen the Bank's market share in the Chongqing region. The Bank will adopt a more forward-looking and proactive approach in its operation and management by conducting more in-depth analyses to gain a better understanding of the regional and macro-economic financial circumstances. The overall risk management system will be reinforced to achieve healthy, rapid and sustainable development of the Bank, thereby maximizing the returns to its shareholders and investors.
About Bank of Chongqing Co., Ltd
Bank of Chongqing Co., Ltd. (the "Bank" or "Bank of Chongqing") is one of the leading commercial banks based in Chongqing, the largest and most populous municipality in China.. Bank of Chongqing penetrate the market by head office business department, small enterprise loan center, and other 114 branches and sub-branches covering all 38 districts and counties of Chongqing, as well as three provinces in Western China, namely Sichuan Province, Shaanxi Province and Guizhou Province. Through its network, Bank of Chongqing provide a broad range of corporate and personal banking products and services, including products and services tailored to the financing needs of small and micro enterprises. While primarily focusing on fulfilling liquidity needs, the Bank also seeks to maximize the return on its funds for non-lending activities by trading and investing in securities.
Bank of Chongqing has received a number of honors and awards for its business performance, management capability and corporate governance. In 2013, British journal The Banker ranks Bank of Chongqing 513th out of 1,000 global top banks. In Chinese 146 urban commercial banks, the asset of the Bank of Chongqing ranks thirteenth, and is also ranked in the top 50 of China banks Standard & Poor's asset ranking. In 2012, Bank of Chongqing was named the top 10 banks with the highest returns on equity in Asia by Asiaweek and the class-II bank by CBRC for four years successively. On May, 2014, Bank of Chongqing was included in the MSCI China Index and became a constituent stock of the MSCI's global small-cap index.
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