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CBA H1 profit falls; ICICI Securities gets IPO nod

GREATER CHINA

* Li Wenhong, director of the China Banking Regulatory Commission's banking innovation supervision department, said the conditions are not ripe for China to adopt comprehensive operations in the financial sector, Reuters reported.

* The People's Bank of China imposed a penalty of 500,000 yuan on Bank of Lanzhou Co. Ltd. for breaching clearance regulations and confiscated its illegally acquired gains of 221,169 yuan, www.ce.cn reported.

* Tencent Holdings Ltd.'s WeChat, a social media messaging app popular in China, said it has permanently banned more than 1,000 "mini-programs" on its platform providing cash loan services in violation of regulatory guidelines, www.jwview.com reported.

* The People's Bank of China will maintain a prudent and neutral monetary policy in 2018, Reuters reported, citing a statement from the regulator. The central bank also said it would step up macroprudential management for shadow banking and real estate financing.

JAPAN AND KOREA

* Shonai Bank Ltd. and Hokuto Bank Ltd., regional banks in Japan's Tohoku region and affiliates of FIDEA Holdings Co. Ltd., are expected to form a business tie-up with Tohoku Bank Ltd., The Nikkei reported. The companies will collaborate on agriculture-related syndicate loans, among other things.

* Tokai Tokyo Securities (Asia) Ltd. will roll out service offerings for high net worth customers in Tokyo starting April, The Nikkei reported. The offerings include management of company owners' assets and corporate stock as well as tax services.

* Juroku Bank Ltd. has obtained approval from a local financial authority in Hanoi to open a representative office in the city, The Nikkei reported. The company aims to commence operations in March, which would make it the first regional bank to open an office in Vietnam's capital.

ASEAN

* The Thai Cabinet approved a bill to establish "public financial institutions," as part of the government's efforts to facilitate reforms in microfinance and cut income inequality in the country, Post Today reported, citing Kobsak Pootrakool, a minister attached to the prime minister's office.

* Thailand's Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking expects the Thai economy to grow between 3.8% and 4.5% in 2018, on the back of expanding exports and the government's allocation of an additional midyear budget of 150 billion baht, Krungthep Turakij reported. A strong baht, however, remains a cause for concern.

* Indonesian state lender PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk expects its subsidiaries, PT Bank Syariah Mandiri and PT Mandiri Tunas Finance, to become publicly listed in 2019, Bisnis Indonesia reported, citing Bank Mandiri CEO Kartika Wirjoatmodjo.

* Indonesia's Finance Ministry has issued guidelines requiring banks in the country to hand over credit card customers' personally identifiable information to the government, The Jakarta Globe reported. The regulator will use the collected data in tax collection-related efforts, the newspaper noted.

* Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has penalized two officers of Bank of the Philippine Islands over a glitch in the bank's system in June 2017, The Philippine Star reported. The regulator did not fine the bank.

SOUTH ASIA

* Bangladesh's central bank has asked National Bank Ltd. to revamp its financial health after the lender's main indicators deteriorated in the nine months ended September 2017, The Daily Star reported. The regulator also asked the bank to categorically contain its default loans and special mention accounts and to exercise due diligence when approving loans, among other things.

* ICICI Securities Ltd. has obtained approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India to raise 30 billion to 40 billion rupees through an IPO, Press Trust of India reported. The ICICI Bank Ltd. unit plans to sell 64,428,280 shares, or a stake of about 20%, via the offering.

* State Bank of India is seeking approval from its board to raise 88 billion rupees by issuing preference shares to the government, Press Trust of India reported.

* Union Bank of India plans to merge or shut down more than 100 branches in urban areas and convert about 200 branches in rural areas into partial banking outlets, Business Standard reported, citing Rajkiran Rai Gundyadka, managing director and CEO of the bank.

* Bank of Maharashtra's net losses jumped to 5.96 billion Indian rupees for the quarter ended December 2017, as provisions increased due to a higher nonperforming asset ratio, Press Trust of India reported.

AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

* Commonwealth Bank of Australia's cash net profit after tax from continuing operations for the six months ended Dec. 31, 2017, dropped to A$4.74 billion, or A$2.722 per basic share, from A$4.83 billion, or A$2.811 per basic share, in the year-ago period.

* ASB Bank Ltd.'s cash net profit after tax for the fiscal first half increased to NZ$575 million from NZ$502 million in the year-ago period. Net interest earnings edged up year over year to NZ$999 million from NZ$923 million.

* The New Zealand units of four Australia-based banks paid a total of about NZ$3.5 billion in dividends to their parent companies in 2017, The New Zealand Herald reported. Bank of New Zealand and the two New Zealand-based businesses of Westpac Banking Corp. and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. paid an aggregate of NZ$2.74 billion to their Australian holding companies while ASB Bank Ltd. paid NZ$450 million to parent Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

* A Productivity Commission inquiry found that Australian lenders have exploited their most loyal customer base, with the government's A$6.2 billion levy burdening customers with higher bank fees, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Middle East & Africa: First Abu Dhabi gets Saudi securities license; Investec selling Irish unit

Europe: Lloyds to cut 1,000 jobs; Munich Re FY'17 net profit drops

Latin America: Itaú, Banco ABC Q4'17 earnings up; Bradesco names new CEO

North America: CFPB says Equifax probe ongoing; Fed's C&D won't hurt Wells Fargo: Bove

North America Insurance: State Farm's Calif. wildfire payouts top $1.3B; 2 health insurers boost outlook

R Sio, Sally Wang, Sarun Saelee, Cathy Hwang, Emi White and Aditya Suharmoko contributed to this report.

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