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UOB Profit Slips With 2025 Net Down 23% as Bank Guides Cautiously and Plans One-Off Junior Staff Payout

Management cites pre-emptive provisions plus thinner margins as key drags, guiding to restrained growth in 2026.

Overview

  • Fourth-quarter net profit fell 7% year on year to S$1.41 billion, taking full-year 2025 earnings to S$4.7 billion, down 23%.
  • UOB recommended a final dividend of S$0.71 per share, bringing the total 2025 dividend to S$1.56, or about a 50% payout ratio.
  • The bank will make a one-off payment equal to half a month of base salary to about 6,000 junior employees in Q2 2026, totaling roughly S$4 million.
  • Profitability metrics softened as full-year net interest margin declined to 1.89% and net interest income slipped 3% to S$9.36 billion, while net fee income rose to a record S$2.6 billion.
  • For 2026, UOB guided to a full-year NIM of 1.75%–1.80%, low single-digit loan growth, high single-digit fee growth, low single-digit cost growth, and total credit costs of 25–30 basis points.