DBS Bank Taiwan’s (星展台灣) pretax profit rose 78 percent from a year earlier to NT$941 million (US$33.47 million) last year, the only foreign bank reporting profit growth for last year, Financial Supervisory Commission data showed on Tuesday last week.
A low companion base the previous year, more income from fees in its wealth management business and a reduction in operational expenses contributed to its rising profit, the commission said.
In comparison, Citibank Taiwan Ltd (花旗台灣) had pretax profit of NT$9.7 billion last year, down 33 percent year-on-year and the lowest in five years, the data showed.
Photo: Lee Chin-hui, Taipei Times
The commission attributed the bank’s declining profit to a reduction in income from fees in its credit card business, as cardholders made fewer big-ticket purchases and did not travel abroad amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fee income from its credit card business plays a more important role at Citibank Taiwan than at other foreign banks, as Citibank Taiwan outranks its foreign peers with more than 2 million cardholders, the commission said.
HSBC Bank Taiwan Ltd (匯豐台灣商銀) reported an annual drop of 20 percent in pretax profit to NT$3.6 billion last year, while Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan Ltd’s (渣打台灣銀行) pretax profit fell 16 percent annually to NT$2.7 billion, commission data showed.
The two banks’ declining profit stemmed from decreasing interest income and falling revenue from foreign-exchange transactions due to interest rate cuts, the commission said.
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