Public Bank's quarterly profit falls 3.8% as impairment allowances rise
Revenue increased 4.4 per cent to RM7.74 billion, while nine-month net profit was largely unchanged at RM5.35 billion.
Public Bank Bhd reported RM1.77 billion in net profit for its third quarter, which ended on September 30, 2026, down 3.8 per cent from RM1.84 billion a year earlier. The Malaysian lender attributed the decline mainly to increased allowances for impaired loans and financing.
Those allowances rose by RM116.4 million as credit charges normalised, the bank said. Investment income fell RM90.8 million, while other operating expenses increased by RM47 million, or 3.7 per cent.
Partly offsetting those pressures, net fee and other income grew RM75.8 million, or 9.5 per cent, helped by unit trust fees and bancassurance. Net interest and Islamic banking income increased RM73.5 million, or 2.6 per cent.
The bank's bourse filing showed quarterly revenue of RM7.74 billion, against RM7.42 billion a year earlier. Its gross impaired loans ratio held at 0.55 per cent on September 30, 2026, compared with an industry average of 1.42 per cent. No quarterly dividend was declared; dividends paid so far in the financial year totalled 22.5 sen per share.
For the nine-month period ending September 30, 2026, net profit remained largely unchanged year on year at RM5.35 billion. Revenue reached RM22.67 billion, compared with RM22.08 billion.
Among its businesses, corporate lending recorded a 29.5 per cent decline in pre-tax profit to RM163.2 million. Hire purchase pre-tax profit dropped 23 per cent to RM114.4 million, while treasury and capital market operations posted a 45 per cent fall to RM47.2 million.
Investment banking pre-tax profit decreased 39.2 per cent to RM11.7 million. Fund management moved in the opposite direction, with profit rising 11.6 per cent to RM246.9 million, supported by higher management fees and fees from trust unit sales.
