STRATEGIC REVIEW Commercial Banking of RM324.9 million (2.36% growth) and correspondingly higher net income of RM415.6 million (6.5% y-o-y). Initiatives have been put in place for greater business synergy such as account planning and synchronisation of digital capabilities. Our Consumer Banking Division continued to strengthen collaboration with various professional associations, as well as running targeted promotions aimed at government servants. By offering products and services tailored to these specific segments, we aim to grow our market penetration of the more resilient mass-affluent sector. At the same time, our Corporate Banking Division continued to pursue growth by focusing on supporting the essential economic areas of Healthcare, Food, Infrastructure, Plantations, Green Technology and Renewable Energy. By maintaining a focus on strategic partnerships and strong customer service, it aims to cultivate, nurture and grow high-quality new customers in the targeted sectors in order to maintain the strength of its asset quality and income streams. The examples above are just some of the many measures that BIMB is taking in-order to increase our resilience and ensure the sustainability of our business. A fuller description of the specific actions in this direction taken by our various business divisions can be found in the Business Review section of this report on pages 84 to 105. The continued evolution of the Malaysian economy will be impacted by advances in sustainable technologies and the rising demand for sustainable financing options. This will require BIMB, and the Malaysian banking sector, to keep adapting to be able to support new, emerging, industries and help customers in impacted industries transition. BIMB has already taken substantial steps in this direction and our success in these areas is measurable. Under our LEAP25 strategy, we aim to double our ShariahESG rated financing assets by 2025, establishing us as a dominant player in Malaysia’s Green Financing industry. We have already made substantial progress towards this goal. At the end of 2021, our Green Financing stood at RM2.2 billion, accounting for 4% of our total financing portfolio, and about 2.8% of our total assets. Analysts see this well above the 1% to 2% of most other banks in the country. With the Malaysian government giving greater priority to the green economy under the 12th Malaysia Plan (2022-2026), the degree of competition in the Green Financing market is set to intensify. BIMB believes that we will maintain a strong competitive advantage though, backed by our sustained track record in Green Financing, our strategic relationships in the Malaysian corporate world and our leading position as a values-based financier. It is not just demand for Green Financing that is set to drive growth in our sustainable finance operations; the appetite for ESG-compliant investments has also risen sharply. Building on our strength as a global leader in Shariah-ESG investment funds, we have continued to grow the number and size of sustainable investment products that we offer. As of 2021, Shariah-ESG funds accounted for more than 65% of our total RM1.43 billion in assets under management, and we have continued to drive innovation in this area. In 2021, for example, we launched Malaysia’s first Waqf Featured Unit Trust Fund in March 2021. We also continued to capitalise on the demand for ethical and Shariah-compliant financing instruments by serving as lead manager or joint lead manager on 15 sukuk issues that qualified for an ESG rating in 2021. Moving forward, we will continue to push the frontiers in the Shariah-ESG investments industry in line both with our growth strategy and with our values as an Islamic bank. INTEGRATED ANNUAL REPORT 202 1 Key Messages Overview Value Creation MD&A Sustainability Leadership Accountability Financial Additional Information 65
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