BETTER CONDITIONS: The conglomerate is to open branches in the US, Europe and Cambodia, it said, adding that overseas operations help improve profit

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 01, 2019
By: Crystal Hsu  /  Staff reporter

State-run First Financial Holding Co (第一金控) on Wednesday said that its earnings might grow by double-digit percentage points this year on top of a 12.3 percent pickup last year buoyed by lending operations in overseas markets.

The bank-focused conglomerate is to bolster its presence in foreign markets this year in a bid to increase earnings contributions from overseas operations to 50 percent from a 46 percent share last year, company officials told an online investors’ conference.

Main subsidiary First Commercial Bank (第一銀行) plans to set up a new branch in Houston, Texas, and add two outlets to its subsidiary in California later this year, company representatives said.

The lender is seeking to further tap the European market by establishing a branch in Frankfurt, Germany, and intends to open an outlet of its branch in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, they said.    [FULL  STORY]