KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 (Bernama) — CIMB Group Holdings Berhad (“CIMB Group” or the “Group”) announced a core¹ profit before tax (“PBT”) of RM1.74 billion for the first quarter ended 31 March 2021 (“1Q21”), an increase of 144.0% from RM714 million in the first quarter ended 31 March 2020 (“1Q20”). The Group’s core pre-provisioning operating profit (“PPOP”) strengthened by 35.0% to RM2.46 billion from RM1.83 billion year-on-year (“YoY”) whilst core net profit grew by 156.1% to RM1.30 billion from RM508 million. The performance translates to a core annualised return on average equity (“ROE”) of 9.3%.
1Q21 core operating income grew to RM4.80 billion, up 15.9% from RM4.14 billion in 1Q20 with performance improving across all segments. Of this, net interest income (“NII”) grew by 8.0% to RM3.47 billion, largely driven by improved net interest margins (“NIM”) in Malaysia and Indonesia. Core non-interest income (“NOII”) strengthened by 43.2% to RM1.33 billion, driven by stronger wealth management and trading income.