Maybank Islamic forecasts 30% growth in 2011

Maybank Islamic expects a 30 per cent growth in Islamic finacing this year.

It posted US$11.8 billion  revenue growth for Islamic financing for the financial year ended June 30, 2010,

Chief executive officer Ibrahim Hassan said the target was achievable but challenging.

Ibrahim said the bank was also aiming to have a more balanced investment portfolio.

“Currently 69 per cent of the bank's financing portfolio is contributed by the consumer segment, while balance from the corporate segment. In the long run, we are targeting a mixture of 60 per cent consumer and 40per cent corporate,” he said.

Maybank's deputy president and head of community financial services, Lim Hong Tat, said the bank was on track to achieve a significant financing growth for the corporate segment with good prospects seen in the education sector.

The CMFT-i facility, coupled with other financing facilities approved since July 2010 for several government-linked institutions and corporations amounted to US$656 million.

“Our latest CMFT-i reinforces Maybank Islamic's market leadership as the largest Islamic financing provider in Malaysia as well as in keeping with our aspiration to be the largest Islamic bank in Asean by 2015,” Lim noted.

He said that since July last year, the bank had participated in two syndicated/club deals