Three banks still at mercy of their NPLs
While non-performing loans at most commercial banks have significantly dropped, three banks recorded a rise in bad loans at the end of the first quarter of this year.
BankThai, Tisco Bank and United Overseas Bank (Thai) all reported higher NPLs. BankThai's distressed assets as of March stood at Bt7.1 billion or 5.98 per cent of total loans, a 5.06-per-cent rise on the previous quarter. However, BankThai president Phirasilp Subhapholsiri remained bullish about the bank's performance. He expects the NPLs will gradually fall to 2.5-3 per cent of total loans by the end of this year. He said the bank's debt-restructuring had gone well and prudence had been exercised for new loan approvals. "We have been careful in our credit analysis. We want to ensure customers are able to repay loans and to know what the money is intended for," he said. United Overseas Bank (Thai) reported NPLs totalling Bt16.9 billion in March or 10.64 per cent of total loans, slightly up from 10.49 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year. At newly established Tisco Bank, NPLs in the first quarter were Bt2.5 billion or 4.33 per cent of total loans, compared to 4.31 per cent as of December 2005. Other banks, however, were able to show reductions on their balance sheets. Thanachart Bank's NPLs totalled 1.87 per cent in March of total lending compared to 2.26 per cent for the same period last year and Kiatnakin Bank's NPLs were 16.94 per cent of all loans in March, compared with 17.13 per cent at the end of last year. A hybrid bank, Standard Chartered Bank (Thai), reported bad loans of 2.85 per cent in March, slightly lower than the 2.88 per cent it reported in March last year. Krung Thai Bank showed an improved balance sheet with NPLs at 10.21 per cent of total loans, down from 10.32 per cent at the end of last year. Anoma SrisukkasemThe Nation
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