The lender managed to beat analyst expectations on the back of a 4 per cent increase in net interest income, even as its net interest margin narrowed by 18 basis points. Earnings faced headwinds from Great Eastern Holdings, where bond mark-to-market losses and weaker equity returns led to sharp drops in trading and insurance income. However, core banking wealth management achieved record revenues of S$1.12 billion when excluding the insurance arm. Looking forward, the bank raised its 2026 loan growth targets while maintaining a cautious eye on geopolitical tensions and energy markets.
Key points
The bank revised its 2026 loan growth outlook upward to achieve a low double-digit expans…: The bank revised its 2026 loan growth outlook upward to achieve a low double-digit expansion rate.
Core banking wealth management delivered record performance, generating S$1.12 billion in…: Core banking wealth management delivered record performance, generating S$1.12 billion in quarterly income excluding insurance results.
Expected credit costs for 2026 were lowered to a range of 15 to 20 basis points amid moni…: Expected credit costs for 2026 were lowered to a range of 15 to 20 basis points amid monitoring of external risks.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
SINGAPORE: Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) on Friday (Nov 6) raised its 2026 outlook after posting a 3 per cent annual rise in third-quarter net profit that beat estimates, even as weakness in its insurance arm weighed on its bottom line.
OCBC, Singapore's second-largest bank, said July-September net profit rose to S$2.04 billion (US$1.6 billion) from S$1.98 billion a year earlier. This was slightly higher than the mean estimate of S$2.01 billion from four analysts, according to LSEG data.
Net interest income rose by 4 per cent from a year earlier, helped by growth in customer loans and high-quality non-commercial assets. However, the performance was dragged down by an 18-basis-point fall in net interest margin, a key profitability gauge.
Trading and insurance income declined 10 per cent and 37 per cent year-on-year, respectively, largely due to the weaker investment performance of its insurance arm Great Eastern Holdings.
OCBC's customer flow trading income jumped by 29 per cent from a year earlier, although non-customer flow trading and investment income swung to a S$15 million loss in the third quarter.
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