The Singapore-headquartered bank said wealth management accounted for a larger share of total income last year than a year before.

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, or OCBC, parent of Bank of Singapore, yesterday said it reported a net profit of S$7.59 billion in 2024, up 8 per cent from 2023. 

The bank said performance of units including its wealth management arm contributed to results; the wealth arm now accounts for a higher share of group income. 

OCBC’s wealth management income, comprising income from private banking, premier private client, premier banking, insurance, asset management and stockbroking, increased by 13 per cent to a record S$4.89 billion last year. 

Group wealth management income accounted for 34 per cent of total income, up from 32 per cent. Banking wealth management AuM rose 14 per cent to a new high of S$299 billion, driven by net new money inflows and positive market valuation, OCBC said in a statement. 

For 2024, a final ordinary dividend of 41 cents per share is proposed by the bank and this takes the total ordinary dividend to 85 cents per share, or payout ratio of 50 per cent. 

Return on equity was 13.7 per cent last year; earnings per share rose 8 per cent to S$1.67. 

The Common Equity Tier 1 ratio, on a fully phased-in Basel measure under international banking standards, stood at 15.3 per cent at the end of December, down a touch from the previous year.  

Helen Wong, group CEO, gave a few indications on strategy and specific targets for the bank.  

“We deployed capital to increase our stake in Great Eastern Holdings (GEH) to 93.72 per cent. GEH has significantly contributed to OCBC’s performance and is a strategic pillar of OCBC’s wealth management business, while OCBC has provided GEH access to our extensive retail and commercial customer base. We also successfully integrated PT Bank Commonwealth, which strengthened our customer and talent base in Indonesia,” Wong said. 
 
“As we enter the new year, we remain cautiously optimistic on the regional growth outlook and are poised to seize growth opportunities as they arise. We will remain agile in navigating the increasingly complex geopolitical landscape, and volatile macroeconomic environment. We firmly believe our collective strength as One Group is key to steering OCBC to greater heights,” she said.  

Shares in the Singapore-listed lender were down more than 2 per cent at the close of trading yesterday.