Techcombank Posts Record VND 10.4 Trillion Quarterly Profit as Fees Rise and Provisions Fall

Record earnings come with a shift in income

Techcombank reported a record VND 10.4 trillion in profit before tax for the third quarter of 2026, up 25.8% from a year earlier, as payment services, trade finance and insurance helped earnings grow faster than operating income. Profit for the first nine months reached VND 28.9 trillion, an increase of 23.7%.

The Vietnamese bank's results also show two developments that deserve attention alongside the record profit: money set aside for potential credit losses fell 30.5%, while its nonperforming loan ratio rose to 1.36% from 1.15% in the previous quarter. Loans requiring closer monitoring nearly doubled from the start of the year.

Total operating income increased 17.1% to VND 45.2 trillion over nine months. Net interest income, the difference between interest earned and interest paid, remained the largest contributor at VND 32 trillion, up 16.9%. Service income grew more quickly, helping the bank earn more from activities beyond lending.

Techcombank's results presentation put nine-month net fee and commission income at VND 11.8 trillion, up 40%, and its share of operating income at 26.2%, compared with 21.9% a year earlier. The consolidated financial accounts recorded net service income of VND 10.425 trillion, up 68.1%, representing just over 23% of operating income. The reason for the different presentations was not explained.

The bank's return on equity over the preceding 12 months rose to 16.3% from 14.4% a year earlier. This measures profit relative to shareholders' funds. Return on assets, which compares profit with the bank's asset base, was 2.5%.

Trade finance leads the service expansion

Letters of credit, cash handling and payments generated VND 4.9 trillion in the results presentation, an increase of 136.6%. The bank linked that expansion to broader use of its letter of credit services, which support transactions between buyers and sellers.

A letter of credit is a bank's promise to pay a seller when agreed documents and conditions are met. It helps businesses trade when a seller wants assurance of payment and a buyer wants assurance that the required shipment documents will be delivered.

The consolidated accounts provide a closer look at one fast growing activity: purchasing documents under letters of credit without recourse. Income from this business reached VND 2.922 trillion, compared with VND 673 billion a year earlier. In practical terms, the bank pays the seller before the agreed payment date by buying the qualifying documents.

That increase of about VND 2.249 trillion accounted for roughly 41% of the rise in service income before related expenses. Payment and cash service income reached VND 6.452 trillion, up 32.4%, although associated expenses also increased to approximately VND 2.950 trillion. The difference between income and expenses in this category rose to VND 3.502 trillion from VND 2.611 trillion.

Insurance contributed another strong increase. The results presentation showed service fees of VND 1.7 trillion, up 106.1%, including VND 705.5 billion in the third quarter. The accounts recorded insurance service income before expenses of VND 2.149 trillion and expenses of about VND 431 billion, leaving approximately VND 1.718 trillion.

Card service fees rose 29% to VND 1.5 trillion. Together, these businesses show how customer transactions and insurance activity are becoming a larger part of Techcombank's earnings.

Interest margins recover as funding gets more expensive

Techcombank earned VND 11.7 trillion in net interest income during the third quarter, up 17.9% from a year earlier. Its quarterly net interest margin recovered to 3.5%, compared with 3.4% in the second quarter.

Net interest margin measures the net interest a bank earns relative to its interest earning assets. Techcombank said changes to lending rates and a greater share of assets producing higher yields helped offset pressure from funding costs.

The accounts show the scale of that pressure. Interest income and similar receipts increased 39.5% to VND 68.135 trillion over nine months, while interest expenses and similar payments grew 68.2% to VND 36.150 trillion. Interest paid on deposits rose 70.1% to VND 22.359 trillion, and interest on issued debt securities increased 85.3% to VND 10.547 trillion.

Several activities outside lending weakened. Investment banking fees fell 17.5% to VND 2.8 trillion as higher interest rates squeezed margins, despite continued distribution activity. Net income from trading investment securities fell 57.6% to VND 895 billion.

Foreign exchange figures also varied by presentation. The bank's results presentation showed foreign exchange and derivatives income rising 27.1% to VND 1.1 trillion over nine months, including VND 430 billion in the third quarter, up 37.7%; the consolidated accounts recorded net foreign exchange income falling 39% to VND 873 billion.

Other net operating income, excluding recoveries of debt previously written off, fell 48.2% to VND 872.7 billion. Strong growth in some service businesses therefore came alongside weaker earnings in several market related activities.

Lower provisions help profit outpace revenue

Operating expenses increased 18.7% to approximately VND 13.8 trillion in the first nine months, slightly faster than operating income. Techcombank attributed the increase to additional staff, marketing and technology investment.

Third-quarter expenses reached VND 5.3 trillion, up 17.9% from a year earlier and 14.6% from the previous quarter. The quarterly cost to income ratio was 31.9%, meaning operating expenses absorbed about VND 32 of every VND 100 in operating income. Across nine months, that ratio was approximately 30.5%, compared with 30.1% a year earlier.

The group recorded VND 5.693 trillion in salaries, allowances and other employee income, an increase of 10.8%. With average staffing of 13,001 people, reported average employee income was VND 49 million a month, up VND 2 million from a year earlier.

Profit before credit provisions grew 16.4% to VND 31.419 trillion. Provisions then fell to approximately VND 2.504 trillion, helping profit before tax rise at the faster rate of 23.7%. Provisions are expenses booked to cover potential losses when borrowers cannot repay.

The reduction in provisions was about VND 1.099 trillion, equivalent to roughly one fifth of the increase in profit before tax. Most of the additional profit came from business earnings before provisions. Profit after tax reached approximately VND 23.014 trillion, up 21.3%.

Infrastructure financing expands the loan book

Techcombank's total assets stood at VND 1.3 quadrillion on September 30, up 16.7% from a year earlier. Corporate lending reached VND 542.4 trillion, increasing 20% from the start of 2026 and 17.1% from a year earlier, supported by financing for major national infrastructure projects.

Credit at the standalone bank grew 16.3% from the start of the year when project loans excluded from credit growth limits were included. Growth measured within the State Bank of Vietnam's assigned limit was 10.7%. The two percentages cover different sets of lending because some project financing sits outside that limit.

Personal and small and medium enterprise lending reached VND 419 trillion, up 12.7% from the start of the year and 22.6% from a year earlier. Unsecured lending expanded mainly among household businesses through the ShopCash product, while lending to smaller companies increased and home loan balances remained stable.

Real estate loans accounted for 29.9% of total lending, after their share temporarily increased in the second quarter. Property therefore remained a substantial part of the loan portfolio even as infrastructure financing helped drive corporate credit growth.

Deposits grow more slowly than lending

Customer deposits reached VND 692.1 trillion at the end of September, up 4% from the start of the year and 8.4% from a year earlier. Those rates were below the reported growth in both corporate lending and lending to individuals and smaller businesses.

Current and savings account balances, including the bank's automatic yield product, totaled VND 245.9 trillion, or 35.5% of customer deposits. These balances are an important part of the bank's funding mix because customers can use them for everyday transactions while keeping money with the bank.

Techcombank also raised funding from international financial institutions during the quarter. Its reported loan to deposit ratio declined to 77.7% from 80.1%. The ratio of short term funds used for lending over longer periods was 27.9%, a measure of how much funding that can fall due sooner supports loans repaid later.

The bank reported a Basel II Tier 1 capital ratio of 14.1% and a capital adequacy ratio of 15%. These regulatory measures compare capital available to absorb losses with assets adjusted for their risks.

Problem loans rise despite the smaller provision charge

Techcombank's nonperforming loan ratio increased by 0.21 percentage points during the quarter, reaching 1.36% from 1.15%. The bank attributed most of the rise to a small number of loans outside its main business areas. Excluding effects associated with Vietnam's credit information system, known as CIC, the ratio was 1.26%.

Loans in groups 3 to 5, the categories treated as nonperforming, totaled approximately VND 11.048 trillion in the accounts' loan classification table, up 34.8% from the end of 2025. Group 5 loans, the most severe category, fell nearly 10% to VND 5.351 trillion, while groups 3 and 4 increased.

Group 2 loans, which require closer attention, reached VND 7.641 trillion, nearly twice their level at the start of the year. These borrowers create an additional area for the bank to monitor alongside loans already classified as nonperforming.

Bad debt coverage stood at 107%, meaning recorded reserves were equivalent to VND 107 for every VND 100 of nonperforming loans. Credit cost over the preceding 12 months was 0.4%, or 0.3% after including recoveries of previously written off debt. Lower provision expenses and rising problem loan balances are both central to understanding the quarter's profit.

Securities, insurance and digital customers add scale

Techcom Securities, known as TCBS, reported record quarterly profit before tax of VND 2.152 trillion. Its nine-month profit reached VND 5.708 trillion, up 13% and equivalent to 76% of its annual target. The company held approximately 46% of the corporate bond issuance advisory market.

Other securities companies recorded sharply different results during the same period. KIS reported nine-month profit before tax of VND 683 billion, up 45%, while VIX Securities recorded VND 424 billion, down 92%. TCBS's growth came during a period when earnings across the securities sector varied widely.

Techcom Life generated approximately VND 652 billion in new business premiums during the third quarter and increased its charter capital to VND 4.3 trillion. New business premiums measure premiums from newly written insurance business.

Techcombank ended September with 19.1 million customers. Of the 1.8 million new individual customers acquired over nine months, 65.3% arrived through digital channels, equivalent to about 1.18 million people. The bank also introduced its OneU loyalty platform and launched Techcom Wealth, a wealth management service for private banking customers.

Chief executive Jens Lottner attributed earnings growth to a broader range of income sources, continued insurance growth and the expansion of wealth management. He also pointed to the bank's role in arranging funding for major infrastructure projects.

October dividend date follows capital approval

Techcombank set October 30, 2026, as the record date for its proposed 50% stock dividend. An investor holding 100 shares would receive 50 additional shares. The bank plans to issue more than 3.54 billion shares using accumulated undistributed profits from its audited 2025 accounts.

The timetable follows the October capital plan approval, which covered both the stock dividend and a smaller employee share issue. The dividend component would increase charter capital to about VND 106.294 trillion. Including the employee issue, the approved plan envisaged approximately VND 106.593 trillion.

The stock dividend transfers retained earnings into registered share capital, while shareholders receive additional shares in proportion to their holdings. The employee issue is a separate part of the plan.

The main dates connect the bank's investment activity, financial results and shareholder distribution:

• September 19, 2026: Techcombank held its second investment conference, with infrastructure financing among the subjects discussed.
• September 30, 2026: The reporting period ended with VND 28.9 trillion in profit before tax and VND 1.3 quadrillion in assets.
• October 13, 2026: The State Bank of Vietnam approved the capital increase plan.
• October 30, 2026: The bank set the record date for shareholders entitled to the 50% stock dividend.

Key Points

• Third-quarter profit before tax reached a record VND 10.4 trillion, up 25.8%.
• Nine-month profit rose 23.7% to VND 28.9 trillion, supported by interest income, services and lower provisions.
• Trade finance, payments and insurance drove service growth, although the results presentation and consolidated accounts used different service income figures.
• Corporate lending increased 20% from the start of the year, supported by major infrastructure projects.
• The nonperforming loan ratio rose to 1.36%, and loans requiring closer attention nearly doubled from the start of 2026.
• October 30 was set as the record date for a stock dividend of 50 additional shares for every 100 held.