PETALING JAYA: CIMB Group Holdings Bhd continued its improved earnings performance for the nine-month period ended Sept 30, 2021 with year-on-year (y-o-y) core pre-tax profit surging 285.7% to RM5.26bil.

       The group’s core net profit, meanwhile, jumped 291.8% y-o-y to RM3.84bil.

       In a statement yesterday, CIMB Group said the recovery in its performance was driven by higher operating income, strong cost containment and significantly lower provisions, with improvements seen across all segments and markets.

       Total deposits grew by 5.5%, with current account savings account (Casa) increasing by 9.6% for a Casa ratio of 41.5% as at September 2021.

       For the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, the group registered a core operating income of RM4.39bil and a core pre-tax profit of RM1.64bil.

       CIMB Group said its performance during the third quarter of 2021 was affected by the movement control order and modification loss incurred on the repayment assistance programme under the Pemulih assistance package.

       CIMB Group group chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Rahman Ahmad said the bank’s performance remained resilient even as the Covid-19 crisis peaked in the third quarter of 2021, as the government undertook stricter movement restrictions to manage the pandemic

       The bank said it also recognised an exceptional expense in the third quarter amounting to RM1.31bil.

       This, CIMB Group said, consisted primarily of a non-cash accounting impairment of goodwill relating to its Thailand business of RM1.22bil and RM83mil in intangible assets write-off and accelerated amortisation respectively.

       “However, this exceptional expense is non-recurring and has no impact on CIMB Group’s liquidity and capital position and is expected to help optimise the group’s return on average equity, going forward.

       “On a nine-month basis, the exceptional expense also offsets the exceptional gain of RM1.16bil recorded earlier in the year, arising from the de-consolidation of Touch ‘n Go Digital.”

       In the same statement, CIMB Group group chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Rahman Ahmad (pic above) said the bank’s performance remained resilient even as the Covid-19 crisis peaked in the third quarter of 2021, as the government undertook stricter movement restrictions to manage the pandemic.

       “We saw slower quarter-on-quarter momentum due to a modification loss, as we expanded our repayment assistance to help affected borrowers under the Pemulih programme and lower core non-interest income, due to the weaker trading environment and restricted economic activity.

       “However, the nine-month performance indicates continued strong y-o-y recovery across all segments and markets, as we make good progress towards achieving our 2021 targets.”

       Going forward, Abdul Rahman said the group should see greater growth momentum, in line with the resumption of economic activities regionally.

       “We continue to make strategic investments into the business, particularly in strengthening our digital capabilities to meet the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s banking customers.

       “An upcoming highlight is the planned rollout of our next generation mobile banking app in the first half of 2022.”

       Abdul Rahman added that CIMB Group is also in the process of streamlining and enhancing its offerings for preferred and private banking customers to provide a holistic wealth management proposition, including in the Islamic wealth segment.