While many emerging market darlings lost their lustre in recent years, often as a result of political and economic crises, Indonesia soldiered on. With he world’s fourth highest population and economic growth hovering around 5%, it continues to be a top pick for investment analysts.
The country’s biggest banks are also keeping pace. They are key players in the nation-wide digital transformation to connect its remote populace with finance and are among Asia’s fastest-growing lenders.
Between 2015 and 2016 Bank Mandiri, the country’s biggest, increased its Tier 1 capital by 42% while Bank Rakyat Indonesia grew by more than 50%. The chaser pack, consisting of Bank Central Asia and Bank Negara Indonesia, increased their capital base between 27% and 30% respectively. Fifth-placed Bank Danamon posted more modest, yet still respectable, growth of 4%.
With capital adequacy ratios between 20% and 23% and return-on-capital and return-on-assets ratios more than double the regional average, the banks are well-positioned to capitalise on the country’s growth.
All data sourced from www.thebankerdatabase.com
