After years of decline, China Minsheng Banking Corp., Ltd. (600016.SH, 1988.HK) reported a return to positive revenue growth in 2025. According to the bank's annual report, it achieved operating revenue of 142.865 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.82%. This contrasts with the negative growth recorded from 2021 through 2024.
Despite the return to revenue growth, net profit attributable to shareholders fell to 30.563 billion yuan, a decrease of 1.733 billion yuan or 5.37% compared to the previous year. However, this decline narrowed from the 9.85% drop experienced in the preceding year.
At the performance briefing held on March 31, President Wang Xiaoyong explained that the profit decrease occurred alongside revenue growth because the bank increased disposals of non-performing assets and raised provisions last year.
Non-interest income played a significant role in driving the bank's revenue growth. During the reporting period, the bank's net non-interest income reached 42.739 billion yuan, an increase of 5.139 billion yuan or 13.67% year-on-year. Notably, other net non-interest income amounted to 24.418 billion yuan, surging by 5.063 billion yuan or 26.16%.
This growth was attributed to trading activities, particularly in bonds. The annual report stated that the group seized market opportunities by appropriately increasing transactions in bonds and other instruments, while also benefiting from price movements in the capital market, leading to strong growth in other net non-interest income.
Minsheng Bank's net interest income also grew in 2025, reaching 100.126 billion yuan, an increase of 1.436 billion yuan or 1.46% year-on-year. The bank credited this growth to expansion in scale and a stabilization of its net interest margin. By the end of 2025, the net interest margin stood at 1.40%, a slight improvement of 1 basis point compared to the previous year.
Against a backdrop of generally narrowing margins across the industry, Minsheng Bank's margin improved against the trend. The bank attributed this to its continuous optimization of business structure, strict implementation of deposit self-discipline requirements, refined pricing management, and efforts to drive trend improvement in the net interest margin.
Data showed that the bank's deposit cost rate was 1.74% during the reporting period, down 40 basis points year-on-year. The average cost rate for interbank liabilities was 1.81%, down 46 basis points year-on-year, with the cost rates for both deposits and interbank liabilities maintaining a downward trend throughout the quarters.
Further elaborating at the briefing, Vice President and Board Secretary Li Bin stated that while supporting customer financing needs, the bank increased the allocation of general loans, which accounted for 55% of total assets, up 0.9 percentage points year-on-year. Concurrently, it scientifically managed low-yield assets to enhance asset operation efficiency.
Regarding the outlook for net interest margin, Li Bin acknowledged challenges such as loan repricing, structural changes, and intense deposit competition. However, he also pointed to opportunities arising from economic and industrial transformation and coordinated policy efforts.
"In 2026, Minsheng Bank will continue to focus on core customers, core products, and fundamental services, supporting net interest income growth based on a balance of volume and price," Li Bin said. "Simultaneously, we will prioritize intermediary business to increase the contribution of net non-interest income and promote a stable and improving trend in operating revenue."
The bank's asset quality remains a focus for the market due to historical issues. Discussing risk management, Chairman Gao Yingxin emphasized that in recent years, the bank has firmly placed risk management and internal controls in a primary position. "All business opportunities are first evaluated with risk, internal control, and regulatory compliance as the top priority. If there are any doubts in this regard, we would rather forgo the opportunity, even if it involves potential business revenue," Gao stated.
As of the end of 2025, Minsheng Bank's total non-performing loans amounted to 66.154 billion yuan, an increase of 544 million yuan from the end of the previous year. The non-performing loan ratio was 1.49%, up 0.02 percentage points. The provision coverage ratio was 142.04%, a slight increase of 0.10 percentage points.
At the briefing, Vice President Huang Hongri analyzed asset quality and risks in key sectors, including real estate, financing platforms, and the large retail business.
For the real estate sector, the non-performing loan ratio for real estate loans was 3.61% at the end of 2025, down 1.4 percentage points from the end of the previous year. Huang Hongri judged that while short-term pressure persists, the sector is expected to stabilize in the long run.
Regarding financing platform business, the outstanding balance was 76.042 billion yuan at the end of 2025, a decrease of 23% from the end of the prior year. "The scale of financing platform business as a proportion is declining steadily, and overall risks are controllable," Huang said. He added that the next steps involve strictly adhering to policy red lines, closely monitoring risk changes in existing business, and steadily resolving debt risks associated with financing platforms.
Concerning the large retail business segment, Huang Hongri noted that, affected by the external economic environment, changes in the real estate market, and fluctuations in resident income, the bank's large retail business in 2025 followed market trends and remained in a phase of risk release.
"The main pressure on risk control in the large retail segment currently comes from credit cards, which is a common issue across the industry," Huang stated. In response, Minsheng Bank will proactively adjust its business strategy by tightening new customer onboarding, strengthening management of existing accounts, and increasing recovery and disposal efforts to stabilize the asset quality of the large retail business as soon as possible.
Total assets of Minsheng Bank reached 7.83 trillion yuan as of the end of 2025, a slight increase of 0.23% from the end of the previous year.
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