HONG KONG, March 29, 2026, 18:14 HKT
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited (ICBC), the world’s largest lender by assets, said 2025 profit attributable to shareholders rose 0.7% to 368.56 billion yuan, while the board proposed a higher year-end dividend. Reuters market data showed the bank’s Hong Kong-listed shares last stood at HK$6.62, up 0.9% on Friday. 1
The numbers matter well beyond one stock. ICBC is a bellwether for mainland banks trading in Hong Kong, where investors are still trying to judge whether margin pressure and property-linked stress are easing or merely flattening out. 1
They are landing as Beijing studies a possible rule change for big bank shareholders. Reuters reported on Friday that regulators may let some investors hold stakes of 5% or more in up to two additional banks beyond the current limit of two, a move that could widen the investor base and help lenders raise capital. 2
ICBC proposed a year-end ordinary dividend of 0.1689 yuan a share, up from 0.1646 yuan a year earlier, taking the full-year ordinary payout to 0.3103 yuan a share, or about 110.59 billion yuan before tax. If shareholders approve the plan, H-share holders on the register by May 12 would be paid on June 16, the Hong Kong filing showed. 3
Operating income rose 1.9% to 801.40 billion yuan, helped by an 11.8% increase in non-interest income, while net interest income slipped 0.4%. Total assets climbed to 53.48 trillion yuan and loans to customers rose to 30.51 trillion yuan. 3
The squeeze on the core lending spread was still clear. Net interest margin, the gap between what a bank earns on loans and pays on deposits, fell to 1.28% from 1.42% in 2024, while the non-performing loan ratio, a measure of loans no longer being repaid on time, improved to 1.31% from 1.34%. 3
Management sounded steadier than the headline growth rate. “Net interest margins will contract at a slower pace,” Vice President Yao Mingde said at a post-earnings press conference, according to Reuters. Zhang Yiwei, an analyst at China Galaxy Securities, said deposit repricing “will be the main driver” behind a bounce in bank earnings this year and estimated it could add about 12 basis points to sector margins. 1
ICBC’s peers are telling much the same story. China Construction Bank reported 1% profit growth for 2025 and Bank of Communications posted 2.2%, while Reuters reported that ICBC, CCB and Postal Savings Bank shares all rose more than 1% in Hong Kong on Friday as investors reacted to the possible loosening of shareholder rules. 4
But the cleaner recovery case is still missing. Reuters reported that China’s property slump has yet to bottom out, and Nicholas Zhu, a banking analyst at Moody’s, said higher oil prices and political volatility could raise asset risks across banks’ lending and investment portfolios. 1
For Hong Kong investors, that leaves a familiar mix: a large cash payout and slightly better asset quality, but earnings growth that is still barely moving and a core margin line that has not turned decisively higher. 3
