ICBC (Thai) upbeat on 2017 loan growth goal of 10-15%

Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) is a key attraction for direct investment from China, and the bank and its subsidiaries reported net profit of Bt544 million in the first quarter of 2017, an increase of 3 per cent from the same quarter last year.
Zhigang Li, chairman of the bank, said the quarterly results were impressive as they came amid only gradual economic growth. Total assets grew by Bt12 billion or 6 per cent from Bt186.05 billion at the end of last year.
In the quarter, the bank had loan growth of 3 per cent or Bt3.6 billion. Much of this expansion was due to lending to support Chinese investment in Thailand. Meanwhile deposit funding expanded by 3 per cent from Bt92.02 billion at the end of last year. 
ICBC (Thai) says it was able to optimise funding management to facilitate business growth thanks to the extensive network of ICBC Group in the global market. 
Li said the bank expected Thai gross domestic product to grow modestly this year at 3-4 per cent through the government’s stimulus measures, infrastructure projects and the EEC programme.
He said further direct investments from China including Hong Kong would continue to provide opportunities for the bank. Therefore, it believes that it will be able to achieve this year’s loan-growth target of 10-15 per cent.
To support its target, the bank is adopting long-term strategies by focusing on business loans, especially to Chinese enterprises that currently play an important role in Thailand. 
Li said ICBC (Thai) had outlined the following strategies. 
l To expand the corporate customer base by providing a range of financial solutions in response to the diverse demands of potential clients. 
l To increase market share by offering more convenient services to small and medium-sized enterprises near where they operate. 
l To focus on Chinese investors who are keen on doing business in Thailand as well as help increase the volumes of exports and imports between Thailand and China. 
l To improve the equipment fleet financing (EFF) business portfolio and continue to focus more on auto lending, which is operated by its subsidiary ICBC (Thai) Leasing.
l To expand the retail customer base while upgrading the bank-card and digital banking businesses in order to meet new market requirements. 
l To expand its payroll business and cross-selling with ICBC (Thai) Leasing.
l Aiming to be the first-choice bank for settlements in yuan. The bank was appointed as a yuan clearing bank in Thailand in 2015. 
“Even though the bank aims for double-digit loan growth, we still maintain prudent risk management on lending,” Li said. “As a result, the non-performing-loan ratio in the first quarter of this year was 1.36 per cent, down from 1.49 per cent at the end of last year. That figure is the lowest level among our peers.” 
Li added that despite the sluggish economy, fierce competition and ever-changing technological advances, his bank’s asset management together with the support of ICBC, the largest commercial bank in China with an extensive network worldwide, would ensure strong growth. ICBC (Thai) would continue to be a valued bank and a financial bridge between Thailand and China.
Last year, ICBC (Thai) and its subsidiaries reported net profit of Bt1.47 billion, up by 10 per cent from Bt1.34 billion from the year before. Total assets increased by 2 per cent to Bt186.05 billion versus Bt183.03 billion. Lending and investment in 2016 slightly increased by Bt1 billion to Bt181.34 billion. The strong asset growth was the result of all business segments including a syndicated loan for TCC Group to acquire Big C in Thailand. Deposits expanded from Bt86.19 billion in 2015 to Bt92.02 billion in 2016.
The bank was able to increase the number of customers, both corporate and individual. The number of corporate customers as of 2016 was 3,545 versus 3,491 in 2015, while the number of individual customers was 162,757, up from 157,799 in 2015.
The NPL ratio in 2016 was 1.49 per cent, down from 1.56 per cent at the end of 2015. The gross NPL ratio was the lowest among Thai listed banks and the coverage ratio was the highest level among its peers.