Jakarta. Bank Danamon Indonesia, the country’s sixth-largest lender by assets, welcomed its new president director on Friday, following the retirement of its former top executive, as the lender seeks to turn around its bottom line and lending growth.

Shareholders of Bank Danamon inaugurated Sng Seow Wah, previously the group chief executive of Alliance Bank Malaysia, during an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting in Jakarta.

Sng takes the helm of Danamon after it reported a sharp decline in profits last year due to slower lending growth.

“The Indonesian banking industry still offers various opportunities for growth, particularly in the micro, small and medium enterprises sector,” Sng said on Friday. “I am looking forward to expand Danamon’s presence in the industry and its contribution to this growing economy.”

Profit at Bank Danamon — shares of which are mostly controlled by Asia Financial, a unit of Singapore’s Temasek — declined by 36 percent to Rp 2.6 trillion ($201 million) last year, largely due to a regulatory change in accounting required the lender to book a lower premium income from its insurance units.

Bank Danamon’s total outstanding loans grew 3 percent to Rp 139 trillion last year; loans to micro, small and medium enterprises made up 28 percent of the total loans.

The lender also disbursed Rp 49.6 trillion in automotive loans last year, accounting for 36 percent of its total outstanding loans.

Still Sng has a more bullish outlook for lending growth this year on the back of stronger economic growth.

The Jakarta-based lender aims to grow total loans by 15 percent in 2015, on top of 18 percent growth in loans to micro, small and medium enterprises, Danamon’s
finance director Vera Eve Lim said.

Sng said that he will continue the lender’s focus on automotive financing and micro financing in the future, while also noting that it will still scout the market for other potential opportunities.

GlobeAsia

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