AmBank (M) Bhd, the banking arm of AMMB Holdings Bhd, plans to focus on the small and medium enterprise (SME) loans segment this year to take advantage of the recent central bank’s Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) cut.

AMMB Holdings group CEO Datuk Sulaiman Mohd Tahir said the SME loans segment will benefit from the lower interest rates.

“The cut in interest rates lessens the burden on businesses. So we expect to see growth in SME loans. At the least we will maintain our performance,” Sulaiman told reporters at the signing ceremony between AmBank and Advelsoft (M) Sdn Bhd for the provision of JomPAY in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Despite the rate cut, Sulaiman said the bank’s other sectors such as retail and hire purchase would expect to maintain their position.

“The overall sentiment is a concern and people are driven by sentiment. I don’t think there will be a boon in property as a result of the OPR cut,” he said.

Sulaiman added that the bank will also focus on its mass affluent segment as it foresees people wanting to diversify their investments beyond fixed deposits into areas such as bonds and unit trusts.

“Deposit growth will definitely be affected because rates have come down so people will want to look at different options. Areas of wealth and cash management become very important,” he said.

AmBank recently revised its base rate and base lending rate by 20 basis points (bps) to 3.8% and 6.65% respectively fol lowing Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) announcement to slash the OPR by 25bps to 3% from 3.25%.

The central bank had said the cut was to ensure steady growth of the domestic economy while protecting the country from global headwinds including the UK’s recent vote to leave the European Union.

Sulaiman said the cut was positive as it would help to stop the economy from declining further.

“The cut will not so much improve but hold the decline in domestic economic activity. The cut in interest rates is definitely positive as it means less interest payment on loans,” he said.

AmBank yesterday signed an agreement with Advelsoft to provide customers with Jom- PAY, a free online banking transaction channel for the public. The platform allows building management operators and tenants to make online payments with better efficiency, convenience and accessibility.

Through the platform, tenants can make monthly maintenance fees using their condominium’s website which will be linked to JomPAY, thus eliminating the need for payment via cash, cheque, credit card and direct transfer.

Presently, 600 condominiums are using JomPAY, the national bill payment scheme established and operated by BNM subsidiary MyClear (Malaysian Electronic Clearing Corp Sdn Bhd).

Advelsoft MD Yap Yun Fatt said at the signing ceremony yesterday that the service currently sees an increase of 10 condominiums in its portfolio every month.

He added the condominiums that utilise JomPAY are mostly within the Klang Valley, Johor Baru and Penang


Source : The Malaysian Reserve / 19 July 2016