An HDBank transaction office in HCM City. The bank reports solid growth in the first quarter of the year, with profit up 67.8 per cent, income from services doubled. — Photo courtesy of the bank

HCM CITY — The Ho Chi Minh City Development Joint Stock Commercial Bank (HDBank – ticker symbol: HDB) said its estimated consolidated pre-tax profit for the first quarter tops VNĐ2 trillion (US$86.1 million), an increase of 67.8 per cent year-on-year.

Its standalone profit was more than VNĐ1.81 trillion, nearly double last year’s.

Income from services doubled that of the same period for three consecutive quarters, showing great growth potential.

Return on equity was over 26 per cent as against 19.2 per cent in the same period last year.

Return on assets also increased sharply to over 2 per cent from 1.7 per cent.

As of March 31 outstanding loans were around VNĐ198 trillion ($8.5 billion), up 5.2 per cent for the year.

The bank continued to develop its traditional customer segments such as agriculture, businesses and small and medium-sized enterprises in supply chains, earning high returns and diligently controlling risks.

Its asset quality is among the best in the industry.

Its capital adequacy ratio, prescribed under the Basel II agreement, was 12 per cent.

As it walks hand in hand with customers to achieve the dual goal of fighting the pandemic and also keeping the economy ticking, HDBank continues to offer preferential programmes to support individuals and micro enterprises with interest rates starting at a mere 3 per cent per annum. It also waives various fees to support customers.

Together with high credit growth, it also achieved a major breakthrough in banking services. Net service income in the first quarter nearly doubled from a year earlier, the third consecutive quarter in which it attained an impressive growth rate, indicating the huge room for development in the services segment.

HDBank is one of the few banks not to have signed an exclusive bancassurance agreement, and so that is another promising area in 2021 and the following years as are credit cards and other services products. — VNS