On the afternoon of September 8, Xiamen Bank Co.,Ltd. (601187.SH) held its interim results briefing for the first half of 2026 via an online interactive format. President Wu Xinhao, Vice President and Board Secretary Xie Tonghua, and Song Jianteng, Deputy General Manager of the Planning and Finance Department, attended the session. The bank had already disclosed its semi-annual report on the evening of August 28.
During the reporting period, Xiamen Bank Co.,Ltd. generated total operating revenue of 3.216 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 19.60%, the fastest growth rate among the 17 A-share listed city commercial banks. Net profit attributable to shareholders reached 1.243 billion yuan, up 7.31% year-on-year.
Net interest margin has turned the corner and is now trending upward
The growth in net interest income was the primary driver of the bank's performance in the first half of the year. The bank recorded net interest income of 2.399 billion yuan, a 20.44% year-on-year increase, largely thanks to higher interest income from loans and advances, which rose 11.13% to 4.285 billion yuan. In terms of non-interest income, the bank posted 817 million yuan, an increase of 120 million yuan, or 17.21%, compared with the same period last year.
However, behind the over 17% growth rate, the structure remains uneven. On one hand, due to fluctuations in the bond market, fair value gains and losses reached 325 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 529 million yuan, compared with a loss of 204 million yuan in the same period of the prior year. On the other hand, investment income came in at 303 million yuan, down sharply by 54.89% year-on-year, the lowest among the 42 A-share listed banks. The decline was attributed to reduced disposal gains from trading financial assets and other debt investments. Additionally, net fee and commission income totaled 190 million yuan, down 4.14% year-on-year, continuing the downward trend of recent years.
Notably, despite the industry-wide pressure on interest margins, Xiamen Bank Co.,Ltd. saw both its net interest spread and net interest margin recover to 1.14% in the first half of this year, up 6 basis points and 10 basis points, respectively, from the same period a year earlier. For the full year of 2025, the bank's net interest margin stood at 1.09%, ranking last among the 42 A-share listed banks. Looking at a longer timeline, from 2020 to 2025, the bank's net interest margin was 1.65%, 1.62%, 1.53%, 1.28%, 1.13%, and 1.09%, respectively, marking six consecutive years of declines. Although the net interest margin halted its decline and rebounded in the first half of this year, it remains at the lower end of the industry. According to data from the National Financial Regulatory Administration for the second quarter, the industry-wide net interest margin was 1.41%.
On September 8, Vice President and Board Secretary Xie Tonghua noted at the results briefing that, with the continuous optimization of the asset structure and further refinement of liability management, Xiamen Bank Co.,Ltd.'s net interest margin achieved an inflection point upward in the first half of 2026. Xie stated that in the second half of the year, the bank will continue its efforts to stabilize the interest margin. On the asset side, it will focus on optimizing the asset structure, improving loan allocation, strengthening loan pricing controls, and refining investment allocation to keep asset yields relatively stable. On the liability side, it will manage the renewal of maturing deposits, optimize the internal structure of deposits, seize market windows to issue low-cost bonds, and fully leverage the central bank's monetary policy to diversify liabilities, aiming for a steady decline in liability costs and a consolidation of the interest margin recovery trend.
Steadily expanding more digital employees
At the results briefing, the sustainability of rapid corporate credit expansion and capital consumption became a focal point for investor inquiries. In response to a question about whether the high growth rate driven by volume-for-price is sustainable in the long term, President Wu Xinhao stated that the bank's corporate loan pricing has declined somewhat in the first half of the year, but this aligns with overall market interest rate trends. In the second half, the bank will continue to balance volume and price in corporate lending, adhering to the principles of "stabilizing scale, optimizing pricing, and strengthening risk control" while continuously improving credit allocation and asset structure. He also revealed that in the areas of technology finance and green finance, beyond scale growth, the bank will lower the overall cost of loans through the issuance of tech-themed bonds and green financial bonds, and utilize government interest subsidies and risk compensation policies to "reduce corporate financing costs while enhancing the bank's overall returns."
The flip side of scale expansion is the rapid depletion of capital. As of the end of June, Xiamen Bank Co.,Ltd.'s capital adequacy ratio, Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio, and core Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio stood at 12.71%, 10.08%, and 8.36%, respectively, all declining compared with the end of the previous year. In response, independent director Dai Yiyi explained at the briefing that the bank applied to the China Securities Regulatory Commission in September 2022 to issue 5 billion yuan in convertible corporate bonds, which passed the preliminary review in November 2022. Due to the registration system reform, the application was transferred to the Shanghai Stock Exchange for review in March 2023, where it remains pending.
Additionally, Song Jianteng, Deputy General Manager of the Planning and Finance Department, stated at the briefing that the bank has established a framework for refined capital management, allocating capital quotas to various business lines and institutions. The newly launched RWA (risk-weighted asset) measurement system enables transaction-level accounting, dynamic tracking, and timely alerts, shifting capital management from "reviewing reports after the fact" to "managing the process in advance." He indicated that in the second half of the year, the bank will adhere to its annual capital control plan, continue to reduce the scale of low-efficiency off-balance-sheet operations, and prioritize freeing up capital resources to support high-return businesses.
On the cost side, the bank's cost-to-income ratio was 35.65% in the first half, down 3.04 percentage points year-on-year. Song Jianteng said that in the second half, the bank will continue to strictly review non-essential expenditures, use performance assessments to guide resources toward frontline business and value creators, and achieve a balance between cost efficiency and business vitality.
Furthermore, the bank's digital transformation drew attention at the briefing. According to Wu Xinhao, the bank is promoting the integration of AI with business operations and management under the approach of "one assistant per position, one digital twin per person." AI applications have already been deployed across customer service, operations management, risk compliance, software development, and daily office work. Applications such as intelligent review of international wire transfers, audit verification, and assisted drafting of regulatory reports have been rolled out, while AI-assisted development is gradually covering requirements analysis, code development, and testing and validation. Regarding digital employees, Wu Xinhao revealed that the bank is advancing the development of a corporate client manager digital employee named "Little Conch," and will steadily expand more digital employees in the future based on scenario maturity and actual results, supporting employee efficiency and customer service upgrades.
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