KUALA LUMPUR, May 30 — Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank), South-east Asia’s fourth largest bank by assets, recorded a lower net profit of RM1.8 billion in the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 (Q1 2019) from RM1.87 billion in the same period last year.

Revenue, however, rose to RM12.97 billion from RM11.51 billion previously.

In a statement today, chairman Datuk Mohaiyani Shamsudin said the results were within expectations, given the softer outlook that had been expected due to on-going global geopolitical issues.

"Nevertheless, we will remain focused on driving our growth agenda through disciplined pricing of credit, ensuring sound cost and risk management, as well as driving productivity and efficiency for sustainable future growth,” she said.

Group president and chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Farid Alias said the first quarter was relatively benign, but the recent revision in interest rates was expected to support economic expansion in the coming quarters and lead to a stronger growth path for Malaysia.

"Asean continues to be an important market for the group with its growing population and stable economic growth, and we continue to see opportunities that we can tap into, particularly as we drive our digital agenda forward,” he said.

During Q1 2019, Maybank’s loans growth stood at 4.8 per cent, driven by a steady loans growth across key home markets.

Its Indonesian operations grew by a robust 11.3 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) followed by other international markets at 4.7 per cent, Malaysia 3.7 per cent and Singapore 3.4 per cent.

Gross deposits also grew at a similar pace at 4.8 per cent y-o-y, led by the Singapore operations at 6.6 per cent, Indonesia at 6.4 per cent and Malaysia at 2.2 per cent.

Maybank’s Islamic banking business continued to perform strongly with profit before tax rising 96.9 per cent to RM896.6 million from lower provisioning levels and higher write backs for the quarter, as well as on the back of a 9.3 per cent rise in total income.

Meanwhile, Etiqa Insurance and Takaful’s profit before tax more than doubled to RM274.4 million from RM120.8 million a year earlier, helping Etiqa maintain its top position in the general insurance and takaful segment with a 12.3 per cent market share and fourth position in the life/family segment with an 11.2 per cent market share. — Bernama