PETALING JAYA: Malayan Banking Bhd
’s (Maybank) operations in Indonesia remain a central pillar of its Asean strategy, despite being its lowest-returning market with an annualised return on equity (ROE) of 3.94% in the first quarter of 2026 (1Q26), compared with the group’s 11.2% ROE.
In order to address this, Malaysia’s largest banking group is undergoing a deliberate portfolio rebalancing, exiting underperforming segments like commodities and low-margin sovereign-linked lending to focus on “network names” – specifically Malaysian and Singaporean corporations expanding into Indonesia – to drive higher-margin, relationship-based banking, CIMB Research noted in a report following the Invest Malaysia 2026 conference recently.
The bank is expecting to launch a new mobile banking platform in 1Q27 to bolster its retail and digital capabilities.
CIMB Research noted Maybank’s wealth management business has emerged as a significant driver for non-interest income, posting 36% year-on-year growth with Singapore as the primary contributor, generating over 50% of group wealth income due to high-net-worth inflows from China and the Middle East.
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