Taipei, Oct. 12, 2009 (CENS)--Thanks to the bullish stock market in September, Taiwan`s financial holding companies (FHCs ) saw their affiliated securities firms score thick profits during the month and witnessed their overall earnings enjoy a sharp rise in the first three quarters.
In the first nine months Fubon Financial Holding Co. raked in after-tax profits of NT$14.71 billion (US$445.76 million at US$1 = NT$33) with earnings per share (EPS) of NT$1.82 (US$0.055), the highest among Taiwan`s FHCs. Victor Kung, Fubon`s president, indicated that the company`s sizable profits during the period came mainly from stock investment gains and the incomes from the appreciation of foreign currencies it held. For instance, in the third quarter alone Fubon raked in stock dividends worth about NT$3 billion (US$90.9 million).
Cathay Financial Holding Co. also benefited from the upbeat stock market. The company`s net worth soared to over NT$100 billion (US$3.03 billion) at the end of September, almost double the corresponding NT$53.9 billion (US$1.63 billion) recorded in December 2008.
In September alone Cathay scored after-tax profits of NT$1.3 billion (US$39.39 million), and its aggregate profits for the first nine months came to NT$7.85 billion (US$237.88 million), with EPS of NT$0.81 (US$0.025). Cathay United Bank, a strong banking arm of Cathay Financial, was the largest contributor to the company`s profits since the bank gained considerable profits of NT$8.45 billion (US$256.06 million) during the same period.
Cathay Life Insurance Co., another strong affiliate of Cathay Financial, saw the premiums collected in the first eight months of the year shoot up 60% from a year earlier to NT$24.1 billion (US$730.3 million), commanding a 30% market share. Besides, Cathay Financial has just completed its issuance of unsecured subordinated bonds worth NT$20 billion (US$606.06 million) with interest rate set at 2.65% per annum.
In September China Development Financial Holding Co. scored profits of NT$1.086 billion (US$32.91 million), bringing its total profits for the first three quarters up to NT$5.301 billion (US$160.64 million), for an EPS of NT$0.5 (US$0.015).
| Profitability of Taiwan’s FHCs in First 9 Months of 2009 |
| FHC | After-tax profits in September (NT$B) | After-tax profits in First 9 months (NT$B) | EPS (NT$) |
| Fubon | 2.02 | 14.71 | 1.82 |
| Mega Financial Holding | 0.781 | 11.745 | 1.06 |
| Waterland Financial Holding | 0.176 | 2.116 | 1.01 |
| Cathay | 1.3 | 7.85 | 0.81 |
| First Financial Holding | 0.719 | 4.782 | 0.76 |
| Yuanta Financial Holding | 0.73 | 5.985 | 0.74 |
| China Development | 1.806 | 5.301 | 0.5 |
| Hua Nan Financial Holding | 0.157 | 2.92 | 0.47 |
| E. Sun Financial Holding | 0.184 | 1.419 | 0.39 |
| SinoPac Financial Holding | 0.556 | 0.861 | 0.12 |
| Taishin Financial Holding | 0.28 | -0.86 | -0.22 |
Source: the said FHCs
(by Judy Li)
