In this briefing:
1. UOB – Driving Bad Loans
It’s easy to miss. Headline bad loans are down. But United Overseas Bank (UOB SP) saw a surge in newly defaulted loans during 2H18 compared with 1H18. The bank’s Pillar 3 disclosure reveals this all too clearly, and it goes to true underlying credit metrics. Write-offs flatter figures or loan reschedulings, and high figures here can lead one to believe that companies and consumers are finding it easier to service their loans. This though may not be true. And it may be one of the most important considerations when analyzing any bank.
2. Best World (BEST SP): BT Article, Franchise and KOL
Best World International (BEST SP) share price has been hammered due to the recent article in Business Times, although the company has addressed them one by one. The annual meeting that recently took place in their office in Singapore shed some light on the seemingly “new but not so new” franchise business model in China. The company also has started to engage Key Opinion Leaders (KOL) aka social media influencers as part of their social selling campaign.
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