Bank of East Asia (BEA) reported net profit attributable to shareholders of HK$2.42 billion for the six months ended 30 June 2026, a year-on-year increase of 0.4%. Pre-provision operating profit rose 16.5% to HK$6.35 billion, driven by stronger non-interest revenue and tighter cost control.

Net interest income expanded 4.8% to HK$7.70 billion, while the group net interest margin slipped 3 basis points to 1.85%. Non-interest income climbed 19.0% to HK$3.47 billion, aided by higher wealth-management and trading revenue. Operating expenses were broadly flat at HK$4.82 billion, cutting the cost-to-income ratio to 43.2% from 46.9%.

Credit costs remained elevated: impairment losses on financial instruments increased 16.5% to HK$2.96 billion, lifting the impaired-loan ratio to 2.71% (end-2025: 2.69%). Return on average equity improved slightly to 4.6%, while return on average assets held steady at 0.5%.

Total assets reached HK$936.88 billion, up 1.7% from year-end. Customer loans were stable at HK$551.35 billion; combined customer deposits and certificates of deposit fell 2.3% to HK$712.93 billion, pushing the loan-to-deposit ratio to 77.1%. Capitalisation strengthened, with the common-equity Tier 1 ratio at 25.0% (end-2025: 24.7%) and the total capital ratio at 28.4%. Quarter-average LCR stood at 167.9%, and the NSFR at 125.0%.

The board declared an interim dividend of HK$0.46 per share, up 17.9% year-on-year, payable on 13 October 2026 with a scrip alternative. The ex-dividend date is 2 September and the record date is 8 September.

Management highlighted ongoing diversification away from commercial real estate, continued investment in AI-driven efficiency and cross-border wealth initiatives, and a CET1 buffer that remains well above regulatory minima. No share buy-backs or new capital instruments were undertaken during the period, though the bank redeemed two US$500 million loss-absorbing notes in March and issued a new US$1.0 billion note in May.