Krung Thai Bank's 2015 loan growth pegged at 8%

It's going to beat the sector average.

Thailand-based Krung Thai Bank is projected to have eight percent loan growth and 10 percent fee income growth in 2015.

According to a research note from Maybank Kim Eng, it believes the bank could generate loan growth higher than the sector average, thanks to its government loan exposure.

Another cited factor was the completed transformation program for SME and retail which could improve the loan-approval system.

Key growth drivers for fee income are loan related fees, bancassurance and credit card fees.

Here's more from Maybank Kim Eng:

Focus on small SME and housing loans. We attended an analyst meeting with CFO Khun Kittiya Todhanakasem yesterday. KTB targets 6-7% loan growth based on GDP growth of 3.9-4.5% this year, driven by small SME and retail loans (targets 10-12% growth).

Corporate and mid-size SME loans should grow 5% this year. The bank also targets 90-92% LDR, 10-12% fee income growth and stable NPLs ratio of 2.96%.

Comfortable with coverage ratio. KTB’s coverage ratio jumped to 127% from 108% in 3Q14 as gross NPLs dropped by THB11b QoQ in 4Q14, thanks to NPL write-offs and debt restructuring.

The bank guided there is room to lower extra provision, but it depends on the economic situation.