Singapore bank OCBC lifts 2026 guidance after Q3 profit beat

SINGAPORE — Singapore's Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) on Friday (Nov 6) raised its 2026 outlook after posting a three per cent annual rise in third-quarter net profit that beat estimates, even as weakness in its insurance arm weighed on its bottom line.

OCBC, Singapore's second-largest bank, said July-September net profit rose to $2.04 billion from $1.98 billion a year earlier. This was slightly higher than the mean estimate of $2.01 billion from four analysts, according to LSEG data.

Net interest income rose by four per cent from a year earlier, helped by growth in customer loans and high-quality non-commercial assets. However, the performance was dragged down by an 18-basis-point fall in net interest margin, a key profitability gauge

Trading and insurance income declined 10 per cent and 37 per cent year-on-year, respectively, largely due to the weaker investment performance of its insurance arm Great Eastern Holdings.

OCBC's customer flow trading income jumped by 29 per cent from a year earlier, although non-customer flow trading and investment income swung to a $15 million loss in the third quarter

The bank said Great Eastern saw mark-to-market losses in its bond portfolio in the third quarter, while significant gains from equities made in the second quarter were not repeated

The group's wealth management income, comprising income from private banking, premier private client, premier banking, insurance, asset management and stockbroking, declined 25 per cent from the previous quarter due to weaker investment performance at Great Eastern

Excluding Great Eastern, banking wealth management income rose two per cent to a record high of $1.12 billion, as the lender continued to benefit from Asia's wealth boom

The bank said it is monitoring the evolving Middle East conflict and energy market situation, as well as market conditions in Indonesia

The bank raised its 2026 loan growth forecast to low double digits, from its previous projection of high-single-digit to low-double-digit growth

OCBC expects total income to grow by at least a mid-single-digit percentage this year, while net interest income is projected to be flat or decline slightly. Credit costs are also expected in the range of 15-20 bps, from 20-25 bps previously

OCBC's results round out the third-quarter earnings season for Singapore lenders, with peers DBS and UOB reporting weaker-than-expected profits, weighed down by a decline in trading income.

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