Business

Thursday June 4, 2009

Citibank sees better loans growth in H2


KUALA LUMPUR: Citibank Bhd expects its loans growth to improve further in the second half of the year backed by higher domestic consumption and lower mortgage interest rates.

Mortgage business director Goh Ching Chee said Citibank’s loans growth in April was in line with the industry’s growth of 17% compared with the preceding month.

“We’ve seen encouraging signs where some of the developers’ launches are attracting more buyers,” he told a press conference after the launch of “Citibank Big 50 Contest” yesterday.

With the average mortgage rates having fallen to about 3.5%, Goh believes this is a good time to buy properties especially for investment purposes.

“To a certain extent, the slowdown that began in the middle of last year is now in reverse trend. Going forward, we think the market will improve further as we’ve seen some positive signs,” he said.

From left: Paul Hodes, Michellina Triwardhany, business director of cards and personal loans Vipin Agrawal and Goh Ching Chee at the launch of Citibank Big 50 Contest.

On its non-performing loans (NPL), country business head for consumer banking Michellina Triwardhany said the bank had not seen any increases in its NPL ratio.

Its net NPL ratio to total gross loans was 1.24% in 2008, compared with 1.67% in 2007.

“We are comfortable with the strategies that we’ve put in place since last year and this year,” she said, adding that Citibank’s NPL was currently among the lowest in the industry. The industry average for NPLs last year was 2.27%.

Meanwhile, Citibank targets a 50% increase in the number of new customers across all business segments with its “Citibank Big 50 contest” which ends Aug 31.

“We hope the contest will entice potential customers and encourage greater spending among our existing customers,” Triwardhany said.

“Citibank Big 50 Contest” was launched in conjunction with Citibank’s 50th anniversary and offers 215 prizes worth more than RM1mil.

On its wealth management business, retail banking head Paul Hodes said Citibank expected to continue seeing double digit growth this year in terms of number of clients.

“Now more than ever, our customers are looking for advice and help in managing their finances given the volatility market. We will do our best to guide them on the right products,” he said.

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