Kuala Lumpur, Feb 19 – AMMB Holdings Bhd (Ambank Group) aims to maintain its business growth at 12 per cent in Financial Year 2015 (FY 2015), said Group Managing Director Ashok Ramamurthy.
“The target is basically the same as for the previous year, and whatever changes to be made to the target will be made known to the public after the end of FY 2014 on March 31 2014, and to be endorsed by our board some time in May this year,” he said.
Speaking to reporters at the group’s Chinese New Year luncheon and also a celebration of the bank’s 25 years being listed on Bursa Malaysia, he said the group also expects the return on equity for the next financial year to be around 14 per cent and to maintain the bad loan ratio below two per cent.
He also said that he expects the non-retail segment to grow at a much faster pace than the retail segment as achieved in previous years.
“For the first nine months of FY 2014 the retail growth was only at 1.5 per cent while the non-retail recorded growth of slightly below eight per cent,” he said.
He added personal loans from the consumer loans segment seem to be softer this year but will gradually accelerate in the next financial year as the company re-strategises the segment.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Ambank Group Tan Sri Azman Hashim said the personal loans’ slower growth was necessary as required by Bank Negara in an effort to control the rise in personal debt among Malaysians.
He said the bank will buffer the loss of business from this segment through other channels like wealth management, wholesale banking, trade finance and retail banking to sustain profits.
Azman said moving into 2014, the central bank’s focus on e-payments will also become increasingly apparent in the customer’s day-to-day payment needs, adding the bank is committed to providing an innovative solution for Interbank Giro via its Internet banking platforms.
On the banking industry’s outlook next year, he said the growth would be in line with the national economy although there will be glitches with the Trans-Pacific Economic Partnership coming on board.
– Bernama
