KUALA LUMPUR: Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd’s net profit jumped 50.3% to RM151.02mil in the third quarter ended Dec 31, 2021 (3Q22) from RM100.45mil a year ago.

       Revenue for the quarter rose marginally to RM480.18mil from RM475.7mil a year prior.

       For the first nine months of the financial year ending 31 March 2022 (9M22), Alliance Bank reported revenue of RM1.42bil, a 3.2% year-on-year growth.

       Its pre-provision operating profit grew to RM812.2mil and net profit for the period was RM469.8mil.

       “The rise in revenue was largely due to net interest income growth of 11% year-on-year, driven by deposit mix optimisation and repricing of fixed deposits.

       “Net interest margin increased 24 basis points from 2.30% on March 31, 2021 to 2.54%,” Alliance Bank said in a statement.

       Client-based fee income (excluding brokerage) grew by 3.2%, driven by increased wealth management, trade and FX income

       Alliance said the bank’s cost-to-income ratio was among the top three in the industry at 42.6%.

       Gross loans increased to RM44.5bil, mainly from growth in SME, commercial and corporate banking.

       “We will provide RM2bil in financing comprising term loan, working capital and government assistance schemes before the end of this financial year to help businesses move towards recovery and revival,” group chief executive officer Joel Kornreich said.

       Current account savings account (CASA) deposits rose 13.1% year-on-year, contributed mainly by Alliance SavePlus Account and Alliance@Work sign-ups. CASA ratio improved to 50%.

       Its common equity tier-1 ratio was at 16.5%, Tier-1 capital ratio was at 17.5%, and total capital ratio was at 21.7%. The bank’s loan to fund ratio stood at 87.5% while liquidity coverage ratio was 167.7%.

       Meanwhile, Alliance Bank plans to achieve RM5bil in new sustainable banking business by the end of financial year 2025, reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, and help its business clients transition towards more sustainable practices.

       It recently launched a sustainability microsite to provide transparency on its sustainability disclosures.

       “We have achieved RM1.6bil in new sustainable business financing and will be launching several sustainable financing and investment propositions in 2022,” Kornreich said.

       The bank has implemented ESG screening in its loan underwriting process, following Bank Negara Malaysia’s Climate Change and Principal-based Taxonomy to monitor the impact of climate risks.

       “We will also continue reducing greenhouse gas emissions in our operations, and will disclose the reduction plans and targets soon,” Kornreich said.