KUALA LUMPUR – Maybank will stop financing new coal activities as part of its sustainable agenda.
Currently, coal financing makes up 0.2% of the lender’s total portfolio.
Group president and CEO Datuk Abdul Farid Alias said the bank aims to transition together with its borrowers to achieve a sustainable renewable energy mix in the medium and long term.
“There’s no new coal financing going forward for Maybank,” he told reporters after the bank’s 61th annual general meeting here today.
He said Maybank’s “No Deforestation, No New Peat, No Exploitation” stance was approved by the board in January last year, and applies to sectors including but not limited to palm oil, forestry, logging, construction and real estate.
He said the bank has also launched a five-year business strategy known as M25 that focuses on three outcomes: attaining sustainable return on equity, achieving top-rated customer experience through digital and hybrid services, and becoming a regional leader in environmental, social and corporate governance.
By end-2025, he said, the bank aims to achieve a return on equity of 13% to 15%, a cost-to-income ratio of less than 45%, earnings per share of more than 100 sen per unit, and a dividend payout ratio of between 40% and 60%. – Bernama, May 6, 2021
