Awards of Excellence
Asian regional awards
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Best Bank: Public Bank
Best Investment Bank: CIMB |
Public Bank is comfortably Malaysia’s best bank again, an award it has made its own. As the government continues to force consolidation in the sector, larger government-controlled banks are emerging, leaving fewer independently managed banks.
Public Bank is the largest non-government-linked corporation in Malaysia by market capitalization. It is Malaysia’s largest independent bank, the third-largest banking group by assets and the third-largest lender. The bank operates 240 full-service bank branches and 365 ATMs. In May 2006, Public Bank acquired Asia Commercial Bank in Hong Kong, since renamed Public Bank (Hong Kong). The group now has 56 branches in Hong Kong and a branch in Shenzhen in the People’s Republic of China.
In fiscal 2006, Public Bank notched up another record year, with a 32.3% increase in total assets and an 18.6% increase in operating profit. Total return on equity was 21.9%, although the bank’s retail division recorded a return on equity of more than 32%. Non-performing loans fell to just 1.6%, as did the bank’s already impressive cost to income ratio, which now stands at a remarkable 34.8%.
