China Citic Bank stays resilient with lower exposure to risky sectors

The bank is less vulnerable to challenges from the property and retail banking segments.

China Citic Bank Corp. Ltd. should be able to maintain a stable asset quality as it has reduced exposure to high risk sectors, says S&P Global Ratings.

This makes the China-based bank “less vulnerable” to sector-wide challenges in the property and retail banking segments, the ratings agency said in a bulletin published on 27 March 2025.

“A continued tilt away from problematic property developers and reasonable underwriting standards in retail banking will help China Citic Bank maintain stable asset quality,” S&P said.

The China-based bank reported a nonperforming loan ratio of 1.16% and a special-mention loan ratio of 1.64% as of end-2024.

S&P forecasts new loan loss provisions will form 0.8% to 1.0% of its average loan balance over the next two years.

Whilst China Citic Bank's net interest margins (NIMs) could contract on the back of lending rate cuts in China to boost consumption, the bank has enough capital buffer against any earnings pressure, it added.
Continued controlled growth and reasonable risk management will reduce the pace of its capital consumption, S&P said.

China Citic Bank's gross loans rose by 4% in 2024, slower than 6.7% in 2023.