On March 20, CITIC Bank released its 2025 annual report. In his address, Chairman and Executive Director Fang Heying stated that the bank fully recognizes that asset quality is the foundation of a bank's existence. The institution's goal has never been to be the fastest performer during favorable conditions, but rather to be the most stable during challenging times. This represents the most solid commitment to its shareholders and embodies the true essence of a "value bank."

The full text of Fang Heying's address is as follows:

Dear Shareholders,

In 2025, the Chinese economy withstood multiple pressures to achieve steady, high-quality development. The financial industry reconfigured its landscape amidst transformation and nurtured new opportunities from challenges. This year also marked a significant milestone in CITIC Bank's journey to build a "value bank." More than 67,000 CITIC Bank employees united with dedication and strived for excellence, responding to financial cycle changes with solid actions. The bank delivered a high-quality development report card demonstrating stable progress and qualitative advancement.

In 2025, CITIC Bank's net profit exceeded 70 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3%. The non-performing loan ratio decreased to 1.15%, while the provision coverage ratio remained stable above 200%. Total assets surpassed the significant milestone of 10 trillion yuan. Despite a complex and volatile market environment, the bank's stock price and total market capitalization reached record highs. Its MSCI ESG rating jumped two levels from "A" to the global best "AAA" rating. Furthermore, the bank was again honored with the "Bank of the Year China" award by The Banker magazine.

These achievements and honors have further enhanced the CITIC Bank brand image. They provide strong evidence for the bank's "balanced, robust, and sustainable" growth logic and further highlight its development resilience through cycles and its continuously advancing comprehensive strength.

This year, the bank, mindful of national priorities, demonstrated new achievements in serving the real economy. It adhered to its financial mission, prioritizing the "Five Key Financial Areas" and leveraging CITIC's strengths to support national directions. In technology finance, it supported technological self-reliance by building a full-lifecycle service system, achieving full coverage for national-level specialized and sophisticated "little giant" enterprises and manufacturing champions within the CITIC Group. In green finance, it deepened its focus on low-carbon development, establishing a green financial service ecosystem covering the entire industrial chain, with green loan balances exceeding 750 billion yuan. In inclusive finance, it focused on people's livelihoods, deeply integrating into the coordination mechanism for small and micro-enterprise financing; the balance of inclusive loans to small and micro businesses surpassed 640 billion yuan. In pension finance, it consolidated its leading advantage by iteratively upgrading the "Happiness+" financial service system, driving a doubling in pension industry loan disbursements. Digital finance capacity accelerated, with strong progress in "AI+" and "Data Factor x" initiatives; digital applications like the wealth advisor "Xiao Xin" flourished. A series of tangible results converged into the "CITIC Model" of comprehensive financial services, serving as both a practical example of financial resources precisely nurturing the real economy and a vivid reflection of resonance with the path of financial development with Chinese characteristics.

This year, the bank maintained strategic focus, advancing the construction of the "Five Leading Areas" bank to a new level. It steadfastly deepened its efforts in "wealth management, comprehensive financing, transaction settlement, foreign exchange services, and digitalization," taking more solid and forceful steps forward: Retail AUM achieved its best-ever annual growth, and corporate wealth management scale exceeded 300 billion yuan. Driven by the "four wheels" of "commercial banking + investment banking + synergy + matching," the bank continued to lead peers in bond underwriting and capital market business. Its self-developed "Xiao Tian Yuan" platform and "Tianyuan Treasury" system were deeply embedded into customer transaction scenarios. Cross-border loan balances surpassed 130 billion yuan, and client forex buying and selling volume growth hit a multi-year high. Innovative, tangible outcomes like "CITIC Easy Loan" empowered business scenarios from points to areas. Simultaneously, the strategic advancement of the "Five Leading Areas" bank, bolstered by the unique advantage of "CITIC Synergy," is accelerating the conversion of potential into kinetic energy: 37 branches, 8 subsidiaries, and group affiliates achieved full business synergy coverage; metrics like synergistic joint financing scale grew rapidly, helping the CITIC Group become the largest domestic direct financing service institution and comprehensive asset management institution. From endogenous growth to ecosystem co-construction, the bank's capability boundaries are continuously expanding, and the momentum for transformation is accumulating and being released, solidifying its comprehensive competitiveness at the industry forefront.

This year, the bank upheld integrity and discipline, building new defensive lines in risk management and internal control. It balanced development with security, implementing systematic improvements across five key areas: asset allocation, controlling new and clearing old risks, risk prevention, system optimization, and enabling development, continuously strengthening its foundation. The steady implementation of the Advanced Internal Ratings-Based approach propelled the risk control system and capabilities forward. Key indicators like the "NPL + Special Mention" loan ratio and the overdue loan ratio continued to improve, while problematic asset management became more efficient amidst stability. Structural adjustments in key areas like real estate and local government debt proceeded orderly; the asset structure was gradually renewed, with positively supported industry credit and strategic regional loans each accounting for over 60% of the total, aligning asset deployment more closely with national strategic directions and keeping cyclical impact at a low level. Behind these results lies the bank's continuous improvement in system construction in recent years: a risk control system that is "effective in risk control and powerful in promoting development" permeates the entire organization; the dedicated approver system and integrated "approval-management-inspection" process have shown significant results, guiding the balance of capital, risk, and value objectives. The bank deeply understands that asset quality is its foundation; its pursuit has never been speed in tailwinds, but stability in headwinds. This is its firmest commitment to shareholders and the fundamental quality of a "value bank."

This year, the bank rode the wave of technology, elevating its technological capabilities to a new level. Facing the global wave of fintech transformation, the bank, through forward-looking planning and firm investment, persisted in foundational "0 to 1" technological breakthroughs and long-term "1 to 100" value creation, writing a new chapter as a "technology-powered bank": After three years, the "Galaxy" project, the largest system cluster construction in the bank's history, was successfully launched, fully reshaping the corporate credit business process. The efficiency of data asset value conversion significantly improved, with the bank being among the first to receive the highest national data management maturity certification. It won the People's Bank of China's Fintech Development First Prize for the third time in five years... After years of accumulation, the bank's enterprise-level public capability system is largely complete, with multiple technological innovations reaching industry heights. The bank's pioneering spirit in fintech is accelerating effectiveness in customer service, investment decisions, and risk prevention: AI large models were deployed in over 120 application scenarios, strongly supporting operational efficiency gains; AI empowered quantitative strategy development, with automated investment trading quotation rates exceeding 80%; technological achievements like "Blockchain+" and "Financial Rare Characters" continued to generate capability outputs and set industry benchmarks... From upgrading underlying architecture to integrating business scenarios, from single-point technological breakthroughs to systemic capability output, the bank is driving management and operational transformation through comprehensive technological innovation, while also contributing CITIC's strength to the digital and intelligent development of China's banking industry.

The past year has been extraordinary, and we are deeply aware that it embodies the strong support of our shareholders and the deep trust of our clients. On behalf of the Board of Directors and all employees, I extend our highest respect and sincere gratitude to friends from all sectors! Furthermore, we will share our operational results with investors through concrete actions. For 2025, the planned cash dividend is increased to 21.2 billion yuan, representing 31.75% of net profit attributable to ordinary shareholders, setting new historical highs in both dividend amount and ratio.

Building an enterprise is arduous, but perseverance leads to success. 2025 marks the conclusion of the "14th Five-Year Plan" period. Looking back, Chinese-style modernization has taken new, solid steps. Similarly, the bank has progressed step by step, achieving a new leap in high-quality development: Net profit achieved a "triple jump" through the "50 billion," "60 billion," and "70 billion" yuan milestones within five years, making it one of the few joint-stock banks with consecutive annual profit growth for five years. Cumulative net profit grew over 40% compared to the "13th Five-Year Plan" period. The NPL ratio declined for seven consecutive years, and the provision coverage ratio increased by 32 percentage points over five years. Historical burdens were cleared, incremental risks are controllable, and comprehensive risk management successfully transitioned from a "correction phase" and "conditioning phase" to a "fitness phase." Various customer segments achieved effective growth: corporate basic accounts and effective accounts grew by 80% and 75% respectively over five years, while individual customers grew by nearly 40%, continuously solidifying the customer base. The bank effectively responded to industry net interest margin compression pressures, adhering to a "volume-price balance" management strategy, with NIM changes outperforming the market. Its liability cost rate has reached levels comparable to large state-owned banks, accumulating cost competitive advantages. Cumulative stock price and market capitalization increases ranked first among joint-stock banks, with total market capitalization nearly doubling. Cumulative dividends over five years approached 89 billion yuan, rewarding investors with real returns. Regulatory ratings remained in the top tier of joint-stock banks. International ratings from Fitch and S&P were upgraded successively. Its ranking in the Global 500 most valuable banking brands improved by 2 places to 19th, and its Tier 1 capital ranking in the Top 1000 World Banks improved by 6 places to 18th... Overall, CITIC Bank's key indicators are at the forefront among joint-stock banks, with core operational capabilities and market brand status achieving historic progress.

The five-year journey has been determined and steadfast. Throughout, the bank has remained true to its初心 (original aspiration), kept pace with the times, diligently pursued the path of a "value bank," built foundations through the "Core Strengthening Initiative," witnessed the blossoming of the "smile curve," maintained direction in the belief that "the higher we go, the brighter it gets," forged ahead in the spirit that "the further we go, the more splendid it becomes," and progressed steadily and enduringly with the conviction that "the farther we look, the more determined our steps"... The strategic persistence and capability accumulation over time have converged into the confidence and composure for "balanced, robust, and sustainable" development. The bank has completed the transition from "repair and adjustment" to "striving for advancement," further painting a clear picture of achievable short-term performance, predictable medium-term growth, and sustainable long-term development. The essence of high-quality development has become increasingly distinct and substantial.

Standing at the new starting point of ten trillion yuan in assets and embarking on the new journey of the "15th Five-Year Plan," facing profoundly changing internal and external landscapes, the bank clearly recognizes that only by finding a balance between upholding principles and innovating, and by maintaining a steady rhythm between inheritance and change, can it continuously provide CITIC's answers to the questions of the era and truly achieve the dimensional elevation of the "value bank."

The bank will uphold its初心 (original aspiration) with integrity, adhering to its本源 (origin) in value creation. It will maintain the political and people-oriented nature of financial work, unwaveringly build the "value bank," and achieve its own higher-quality development by serving national strategies. It will shoulder the responsibility of serving the real economy, solidly advance the "Five Key Financial Areas," leverage the core functions of a state-owned financial enterprise, effectively balance environmental, social, and economic benefits, and strive to be a creator of multiple values. Based on its own endowments, it will explore differentiated financial service paths, build a distinctive service system with professional capabilities, deliver warm financial services, and truly become the preferred partner trusted by clients, forging unique value. Through cycle-resilient and稳健 (steady) operations, it will balance short-term goals with long-term development, creating sustainable long-term returns for shareholders, and guarding long-term value. This is the bank's unwavering pursuit and simplest belief – no matter how the environment changes, the初心 (original aspiration) of serving the real economy remains unchanged, the direction of value creation remains constant, and the steps towards high-quality development never cease.

The bank will temper its qualities with perseverance, striving for excellence through strategic refinement. It will maintain strategic focus, inherit the "'Five Leading Areas' Bank Strategy" and the "342 Core Strengthening Action," and strive for excellence in the three key areas of "wealth management, comprehensive financing, and investment transactions," while establishing leading advantages in the three tracks of "payment and settlement, cross-border services, and digitalization/intelligence." The bank firmly believes that only by洞察 (insightfully understanding) industry evolution trends and building differentiated core competencies in key areas can it break free from the dilemma of homogeneous competition and seize the high ground for future development. It will meticulously refine product creation, customer experience, and ecosystem building with sustained effort, gradually translating the strategic blueprint into measurable, perceptible competitiveness. The bank believes that the strategic foresight accumulated through each timely adaptation and the developmental advantages cultivated by deepening core tracks will ultimately allow it to accelerate high-quality development on the path to excellence.

The bank will reach far with confidence, achieving the future through long-termism. Confidence stems from an increasingly profound risk and compliance culture, where "pursuing returns filtered for risk" and "preferring to forgo profit rather than accept undue risk" have transitioned from management requirements to a bank-wide consensus. The prudent philosophy deeply embedded in operations is transforming into tangible results of稳健 (steady) development. Confidence stems from a continuously refined capability system: the business structure driven by the "three pillars" is becoming more balanced, capital and financial management精益 (lean) levels are constantly improving, and technology's driving role in operational transformation is more evident. The bank's operational resilience continues to strengthen, and its ability to withstand economic fluctuations is further enhanced. The strategic "broad brushstrokes" are gradually being detailed into the "fine brushwork" of business implementation. Confidence also stems from its unique synergy endowment: the CITIC Group's "finance + industry" synergistic ecosystem provides greater depth for comprehensive services and cross-border innovation. All these factors collectively凝聚 (coalesce) into the powerful momentum and vitality for building a "century-old shop," allowing the bank to continuously reap the compound interest of time and achieve a broader future through high-quality development.

Upholding our初心 (original aspiration), revealing our true character, and believing in the future. Standing at the new era coordinates of the "15th Five-Year Plan," let us move forward together, filled with confidence and determination, gathering courage and strength, to embark on the next magnificent five years!