Big State-owned Banks See Double Digit Rise in Fee Revenues, PSBC Posts over 37% Surge

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Two of China’s big six state-owned banks have seen a double digit increase in revenues derived from fees, despite a push from Chinese regulators for “sacrificing” more profits to the real economy for the sake of greater financial inclusion in the wake of COVID-19.

The big six state-owned banks of Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), Bank of China (BOC), Bank of Communications (BOCOM), China Construction Bank (CCB), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Postal Savings Bank of China (PSBC) all saw increases in their processing fee and commission fee net revenues in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period last year.

ICBC saw the largest volume of fee revenues at 75.943 billion yuan, for an increase of 0.51% compared to the same period last year, while CCB’s revenues were 69.438 billion yuan for a rise of 6.82%.

PSBC posted the biggest YoY increase in its fee revenues, with a rise of 37.86% to 11.429 billion yuan, while BOC also saw a double digit gain, with a 11.93% rise in fee revenues to 46.813 billion yuan.

ABC’s fee revenues for the first half were 48.15 billion yuan, for an 8.84% increase compared to the same period last year, while BOCOM’s totalled 24.966 billion yuan, for a 2.84% increase.

The increase in the fee revenues of China’s big state-owned banks arrives despite Chinese regulators pushing lenders to “sacrifice” 1.5 trillion yuan in profits for the real economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.