Hong Leong Finance has reported earnings of $104.1 million for the FY2024 ended Dec 31, 2024, up 11.5% y-o-y from $93.4 million in the same period a year ago.
Earnings for the 2HFY2024 came in 10% y-o-y higher at $51.5 million.
For 2HFY2024, net interest income increased by 11.5% to $112.4 million with savings in interest expenses outpacing lower interest income as compared to the corresponding prior period.
For FY2024, the y-o-y increase in hiring charges outweigh the y-o-y increase in interest expenses, attributed to the overall improvement in net interest income by 11.3% to $225.1 million on effective management of loan and deposit repricing cost.
Other interest income surged 9.5% to $41.7 million and 25.1% to $88.5 million for second half 2024 and full year respectively on strategic management of liquid assets.
For 2HFY2024, fee and commission income declined by 26.0% to $4.1 million, and 18.6% to $8.1 million for FY2024 from lending business as property financing activities in the financial market remained subdued amid slower market sentiments.
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Total operating expenses increased by 1.8% at $53.1 million and 3.7% at $108.8 million for the 2HFY2024 and FY2024 respectively mainly due to higher depreciation charge on the capital investment for the launch of HLF Digital application in August 2024.
Professional, cybersecurity and infrastructure costs related to digital front end systems attributed to the higher other operating expenses. The staff cost and other operational costs were well under control, says Hong Leong Finance .
Deposits and balances of customers decreased to $12.3 billion as at Dec, 31, 2024, representing a decrease of 2.7% over the previous year’s base on a higher loan/deposit ratio to maximise loan funding.
Cash and cash equivalents including statutory deposit with the Monetary Authority of Singapore together with Singapore Government debt securities, MAS Bills and MAS FRN held as liquid assets amounted to $2.89 billion as at Dec 31, 2024.
The group’s Capital Adequacy Ratio stood at 16.3% as at Dec 31, 2024.
As the business environment continues to evolve, Hong Leong Finance says that it will focus on driving digital adoption and pursuing strategic business growth opportunities, integrating its commitment to sustainable financing for consumers and SMEs with responsible lending practices.
Shares in Hong Leong Finance closed 1 cent higher or 0.4% up at $2.51 on Feb 21.
