KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 27): Malayan Banking Bhd's (KL:MAYBANK) net profit came in a tad higher in the second quarter ended June 30, 2026 (2QFY2026) as better cost control and lower impairment provisions more than offset lower interest income.
Net profit rose just over 2% to RM2.69 billion or 22.24 sen per share during the quarter under review from RM2.63 billion or 21.75 sen per share a year ago, according to a bourse filing.
The group’s net interest income and Islamic banking income for the quarter increased by RM5.0 million or 0.1% year-on-year to RM5.39 billion.
The groupʼs insurance/takaful service results decreased by RM86.5 million from a year earlier to RM308.0 million.
The group’s other operating income increased by RM250.2 million to RM2.93 billion for 2QFY2026, mainly due to a significant swing from unrealised derivative losses to gains and higher gains from the disposal of financial assets at fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL).
This increase was partly offset by lower foreign exchange gains, lower gains from the disposal of fair value through other comprehensive income investments, lower realised derivative gains, and higher unrealised losses on certain financial liabilities and investments at FVTPL.
The nation's largest lender by asset earnings declared an interim dividend of 31 sen per share compared with 30 sen per share a year earlier.
For the quarter under review, the groupʼs overhead expenses decreased by 2.5% to RM3.69 billion due to lower personnel, marketing and administration and general costs. The decreases were, however, offset by higher establishment costs of RM109.6 million.
The group's net allowances for impairment losses on loans, advances, financing and other debts decreased by RM109.9 million from a year earlier.
The group recorded net write-back for impairment losses on financial investments of RM62.4 million for the quarter as compared to net allowances of RM43.2 million for the year-ago period.
The group’s loans expanded 2.7% during the period, led by Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, which grew 5.5%, 3.4% and 4.3% respectively. Net interest margins improved by 10 basis points year-on-year to 2.10%, and loan loss coverage was steady at 103.1% during the quarter.
Quarterly revenue slipped 5.8% to RM16.1 billion from RM17.1 billion.
Maybank chairman Tan Sri Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa said the bank's “robust capital and liquidity positions” provide the lender with a strong foundation to navigate changing market conditions with confidence, while maintaining the financial capacity to support its customers and businesses.
“We remain committed to prudent stewardship and responsible growth, creating enduring value for our shareholders while continuing to advance our sustainability agenda and make a positive impact in the communities we serve,” he said in a statement accompanying the results announcement.
For the first half of the year, Maybank's net profit slid to RM5.17 billion from RM5.22 billion a year ago. Revenue fell to nearly RM31 billion from about RM34 billion.
President and group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Khairussaleh Ramli said that the group is seeing healthy activity across its wealth, investment banking, global market flow business and its home markets. Investment in technology also helps the group to deepen its customer engagement, scale businesses and improve productivity, he added.
"As we execute ROAR30, we will continue to sharpen our focus on businesses where we can lead, strengthen our capabilities and capture opportunities across the region. In the second half, our priority is to sustain this pace of execution, translate opportunities into quality earnings and remain agile in responding to changing customer needs and market conditions, keeping us firmly on track towards our FY2026 ambitions,” Khairussaleh said.
Looking ahead, Maybank is investing RM10 billion through 2030, including RM1.5 billion in technology spend for FY2026, to modernise its core, strengthen resilience, accelerate artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud adoption, and strengthen risk and compliance capabilities — enabling a more seamless and personalised customer experience across its business.
"The group's growth priorities remain focused on expanding scalable regional business across Islamic finance, wealth management, transaction and payments, and corporate and investment banking. At the same time, the group will continue to strengthen its foundations through investments in technology, data and AI, while enhancing workforce capabilities, productivity, and capital efficiency," it added.
Shares of Maybank were trading eight sen or 0.56% lower at RM10.66 earlier on Thursday, valuing the group at RM128.21 billion.