El informe de resultados de Zhejiang Merchant Bank para 2025 genera confianza en el desarrollo a largo plazo

Produced|China Inter-Visit Network

Review|Li Xiaoyan

On March 31, the Zhejiang Merchants Bank 2025 Annual Performance Briefing was held successfully. This was the first in-depth public exchange between the bank’s newly appointed management team and the market. Faced with a complex and ever-changing external environment and the pains of industry transformation, Zhejiang Merchants Bank, with “stability as the top priority and professionalism in steadfast practice” as its core tone, delivered an annual answer sheet characterized by overall steadiness, improvement in quality and efficiency, and highlighted resilience. It clearly expounded the business logic of long-termism, and firmly conveyed the strategic resolve and development confidence to build a “first-class commercial bank.”

2025 is a critical year for banks to press ahead under pressure and to tackle transformation. Under multiple challenges, including weak economic recovery at the macro level, continued narrowing of industry net interest margins, and increased market volatility, Zhejiang Merchants Bank adheres to its strategic positioning without causing disruptions or pursuing reckless advances. It addresses external uncertainties with the certainty of its own development, with an overall stable operating stance and continuous optimization of its structure.

By the end of 2025, Zhejiang Merchants Bank’s total assets reached RMB 3.48 trillion, up 4.68% from the end of the previous year, with scale expanding steadily. For the full year, it achieved operating income of RMB 62.514 billion. Net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 12.931 billion, and the profit base remained solid. Particularly notable is that asset quality continued to improve: the non-performing loan ratio fell to 1.36%, down 0.02 percentage points year-on-year. It achieved a consecutive four-year decline, with risk management capabilities steadily strengthened, laying a solid safety barrier for high-quality development.

Significant results were achieved in refined liability-side management. The average interest rate paid on deposits decreased by 32 BP compared with the previous year, and cost control was precisely effective. Deposits within Zhejiang Province surpassed RMB 630 billion, ranking first among joint-stock banks for the first time, further strengthening the bank’s local market foundation. On the asset side, Zhejiang Merchants Bank stays true to the essence of serving the real economy. More than half of its新增贷款 (new loans) went to key areas such as sci-tech innovation, green finance, and inclusive finance. Net interest margin remained at 1.60%, better than the market average, demonstrating resilient operating capability to get through the cycle.

This year marks the kickoff year of China’s “15th Five-Year Plan” and also the starting year of Zhejiang Merchants Bank’s “5th Five-Year Plan.” Standing at a new historical starting point, Zhejiang Merchants Bank remains unwavering in its goal of building a “first-class commercial bank.” It adheres to the core strategy of “deeply cultivating Zhejiang,” establishes five-word action guidelines—“stabilize, advance, innovate, reform, and make things better”—and forms an enduring strategic resolve and a strong sense of action.

Around its development goals, the bank has clearly defined four strategic paths: “govern the bank through management, achieve excellence through services, develop through technology, and strengthen through talent.” It is fully committed to building a sustainable development model characterized by “low risk occupation, high-quality assets, and refined management.” In 2025, the newly appointed management team comprehensively launched the construction of a “five-in-one” management system that is standardized, refined, empowered, systematized, and scientifically approached—confirming reform directions of “making the headquarters stronger, making branches better, and making sub-branches more effective,” while management effectiveness continues to be unleashed.

With customers at the center, it deepens integrated operations and implements the “Huanxin Strengthening the Foundation” project, promoting the transformation of technology from supporting the back office to enabling business operations. It improves talent incentive mechanisms and cultivates a good ecosystem of “putting fighters first.” It firmly does not pursue short-term benefits at the cost of sacrificing risk or drawing down the future, and it accumulates momentum for long-term high-quality development.

After the smooth transition of the new and old leadership teams, Zhejiang Merchants Bank’s newly appointed management team upholds the philosophy of “govern the bank with professionals, and govern the bank with experts.” It strictly follows the operating laws of commercial banks and proposes the “1155” operating strategy. With the core “construction blueprint” of “one main line, one capability, five-dimensional coordination, and five groups working in tandem,” it guides the whole bank to operate steadily and execute precisely.

Stick to one main line: uphold customer-centered integrated operations, break down departmental barriers, and achieve one-stop services where “walk in through one door and get everything done,” comprehensively improving the customer service experience. Forge one capability: build enterprise-level industry research capabilities. Each year, it deeply cultivates 3–4 key industries, forming professional judgment capabilities of “being able to understand business logic, risk characteristics, and development laws.” Currently, research in industries such as artificial intelligence and new energy has been launched to precisely empower credit deployment.

Strengthen five-dimensional coordination and systematically advance coordinated development of customer groups, risks, structure, efficiency, and scale. In terms of customer groups: on the corporate side, focus on “New-Quality Zhejiang Merchants” (new-quality Zhejiang Merchants); on the retail side, focus deeply on the middle-income group to serve common prosperity. In terms of risks: place risk control at the top of operations; clarify that the non-performing loan net generation rate for new corporate business must be kept within five per thousand; and stay firmly on the risk bottom line. In terms of structure: optimize the allocation of resources to enhance operating resilience. In terms of efficiency and scale: pursue “appropriate scale,” and plan that during the “15th Five-Year Plan” period the asset growth rate will be no lower than Zhejiang’s GDP growth rate, achieving balanced development of scale and quality.

Deepen five groups working in tandem and promote coordinated development of corporate business with capital markets, stock with incremental flow, interest with non-interest, domestic with overseas, and financial with non-financial services. Using “revitalizing existing stock and expanding incremental flow” as a handle, it promotes the transfer and turnover of trading-bank assets such as bills, certificates, and bonds. The share of related trading revenue exceeds 4%. Leveraging traditional advantages in supply chain finance, it builds the “Zhejiang Merchants Transaction” distinctive brand and creates new competitive advantages through differentiated development.

In featured business areas, Zhejiang Merchants Bank has made multiple breakthroughs with prominent advantages, forming a matrix of differentiated development. In sci-tech innovation finance, with a “talent bank” as the foundation, the outstanding loan balance exceeds RMB 270 billion, and it serves more than 35,000 sci-tech innovation enterprises. Supply chain finance covers fields such as power and new energy vehicles, serving more than 98,000 upstream and downstream enterprises, with the non-performing rate remaining low.

Precious metals business has become the biggest highlight of the year. Vice President Jing Feng disclosed at the performance briefing that in 2025 Zhejiang Merchants Bank precisely captured the one-way uptrend in gold. The full-year trading volume of precious metals expanded by eight times compared with the previous year, with transaction capability and brand advantages improving rapidly. Based on traditional analysis, the bank introduced a quantitative factor model to strengthen hedging and directional trading capabilities, building a distinctive trading moat.

Looking ahead to 2026, in the face of a complex external environment and market volatility, Zhejiang Merchants Bank will maintain a prudent approach and enhance precious metals service capability from two dimensions. On one hand, it will deepen proprietary trading, improve an investment research and trading integrated system, iterate quantitative models, and capture structural opportunities. On the other hand, it will optimize its agency client business, enrich product systems such as accumulated gold and physical precious metals, focus on industry-chain demands, provide “one enterprise, one policy” comprehensive financial services, and continuously consolidate its leading business advantages.

At the performance briefing, the management of Zhejiang Merchants Bank gave a deep explanation of the profound connotation behind the brand Logo “Juqing and abacus” integration: Juqing carries five thousand years of civilization, embodying historical weight and a sense of reverence; the abacus condenses commercial wisdom, implying careful calculations, integrity-based operations, and the ability to go through cycles. It symbolizes an operational bottom line of “strict rules, strict ledgers, and a铁算盘 (a traditional calculation tool).”

Taking over the baton of 21 years of development, the management solemnly committed to earnestly implement national and the provincial party committee and provincial government’s strategic deployments, and to practice the corporate culture philosophy of “see the bank’s actions, see people’s hearts, and see the future.” “See the bank’s actions” means doing solid work and strengthening execution, and carrying forward the “six-doing style.” “See people’s hearts” means staying true to the original aspiration and the heart, serving the real economy and common prosperity. “See the future” means adhering to long-termism—draw one blueprint and complete it to the end, accompany customers as they grow, and create sustainable value for all parties.

With the tide receding and the shore opening, sails are full and the journey is strong. The steady operations and strategic layout of 2025 have laid a solid foundation for Zhejiang Merchants Bank’s “15th Five-Year Plan” high-quality development. Standing at a new starting point, Zhejiang Merchants Bank will continue to build on “stability” as the foundation and “expertise” as the key, stay true to serving the real economy, and firmly follow the road of long-termism. Within strategic resolve, it will cultivate new opportunities; within professional steadfast practice, it will open up a new chapter. It will move steadily toward the vision of “a first-class commercial bank,” and with more stable operations, better-quality services, and outstanding performance, it will repay market trust and help economic development.