KUALA LUMPUR: Public Bank Bhd made improvements in its core lending and deposit-taking business to post a stronger net profit of RM4.28bil in the nine months period ended Sept 30, 2021, a 15% increase compared to RM3.72bil in the previous corresponding period.

       The group's revenue for the three quarters was 4.05% lower at RM14.76bil compared to RM15.39bil in the same quarter in 2020.

       In the third quarter alone, the group's net profit slipped 2.3% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM1.36bil amid a 6.25% decline in revenue to RM4.81bil.

       "During these trying times, the group had undertaken multiple proactive initiatives in its business strategies and placed greater emphasis on risk management and productivity," said Public Bank Group founder and chairman emeritus Tan Sri Teh Hong Piow in a statement released in conjunction with the earnings results.

       He said these efforts allowed the group to register a net return-on-equity of 12.4% and a cost-to-income ratio of 31.7% for the nine months ended September 2021.

       In the year-to-date period, the group's total loans saw an annualised growth of 3% to RM353.5bil with domestic loans growing at an annualised rate of 2.8% to RM330.5bil.

       Acoording to the goup, about RM81.9bil or 25% of its outstanding domestic loans as at end-October fall under the Repayment Assistance Programmes, benefiting over 435,000 customers.

       Over the same period, the group's total customer deposits grew at an annualised rate of 4.8% to RM378.9bil supported mainly by its low cost current and savings deposits, which grew at an annualised rate of 12.2%.

       Total domestic customer deposits grew at an annualised rate of 5.1% to RM350.5bil.

       However, the group's non-interest income declined 2.9% in the nine months period due to the reduction in investment income.

       The unit trust business, Public Mutual, however, registered pre-tax profit growth of 25.5% y-o-y.

       "As at the end of September 2021, Public Mutual managed a total of 170 unit trust funds with assets under management totalling RM102.7 billion and continued to capture a large retail market share of 32.9%," said Teh.

       Meanwhile, the group’s common equity Tier 1 capital ratio, Tier 1 capital ratio and total capital ratio stood at a healthy level of 14.1%, 14.1% and 17.2% respectively, while liquidity coverage ratio remained healthy at 145.6%.

       Moving forward, the group is cognisant of concerns about the lingering effect of Covid-19 and the effectiveness of vacines against new variants, which could continue to hinder the pace of the economic recovery.

       "Despite the continued challenging environment, the Public Bank Group will remain steadfast in its efforts to strengthen its balance sheet, uphold its strong asset quality as well as enhance cost efficiencies further.

       "While embracing the changes stemming from the pandemic, the Group will continue its pursuit of digital transformation and product innovation to strengthen long term business growth," said Teh.