KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 30): PT Bank CIMB Niaga Tbk, the 92.5%-owned Indonesian subsidiary of CIMB Group Holdings Bhd (KL:CIMB), reported a 17.1% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in its consolidated net income for the nine months ended Sept 30, 2024 (9MFY2024).

CIMB Niaga's net income rose to 5.83 trillion rupiah (RM1.61 billion) from 4.98 trillion rupiah in the previous year's corresponding period, with earnings per share increasing to 204.34 rupiah (5.66 sen) from 196.60 rupiah.

Its president director Lani Darmawan said the growth reflects the bank's focus on quality and robust asset growth, and operating efficiency.

"Our asset quality remains solid, with a gross non-performing loan (NPL) ratio of 2%, well below the industry average — a clear testament to our prudent and proactive asset quality management, which reinforces the resilience of our portfolio and commitment to sustainable performance,” she said in a statement on Wednesday.

The bank's interest income climbed 7.8% to 18.02 trillion rupiah in 9MFY2024 from 16.71 trillion rupiah a year earlier. However, it reported a slightly lower net interest income of 10.01 trillion rupiah against 10.19 trillion rupiah due to higher interest expenses.

CIMB Niaga's total loans and financing grew 6.4% y-o-y to 218.6 trillion rupiah, with the highest growth coming from the small and medium enterprise (SME) segment at 9.4% y-o-y, followed by corporate banking (7.1%) and consumer banking (5.4%). The increase in retail loans were largely contributed by auto loans, which grew 18.2% y-o-y.

"In the first nine months of 2024, CIMB Niaga booked nearly 25% of the bank’s total financing (or equivalent to 54.4 trillion rupiah) supporting a just transition, low-carbon economy, the Paris Agreement, and the Sustainable Development Goals," the bank added.

Its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) stood higher at 23.4% versus 23.8% previously, while its loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) slipped to 84.3% from 86.4%.

Total deposits rose 8.8% y-o-y to 256 trillion rupiah, attributed to a current account and savings account (CASA) growth of 8.8% y-o-y to 170.7 trillion rupiah. CIMB Niaga said this was achieved by fostering stronger customer relationships and enhancing the overall customer experience via digital touchpoints, bringing the CASA ratio to 66.7%.

As at Sept 30, the bank’s total consolidated assets stood at 353.3 trillion rupiah, which solidifies its position as Indonesia’s second-largest privately-owned bank.

Moving forward, Lani said CIMB Niaga remains positive about the remainder of 2024, anchoring its approach on four key pillars, namely disciplined asset allocation, expanding its retail customer base, strengthening its CASA portfolio, and deepening digital engagements.

"We continue to prioritize operational and risk resiliency across the organization, which has proven essential over recent years," she said.

"We are in the midst of refining our strategic plan by leveraging our competitive strengths and analyzing market trends. These strategic efforts are aligned with our vision to be a resilient, future-ready bank that delivers high-quality services, as well as innovative products to our customers by always inculcating #WorkFromHeart,” Lani added.

Shares of CIMB Group slipped 10 sen or 1.24% to RM7.99 at Bursa Malaysia's close on Wednesday, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM85.65 billion.