RHB Capital 3Q Net Profit Up 38%

– Year-to-dateNet Profit of RM211.9 million

Kuala Lumpur, 27 May 2004:- The RHB Capital Berhad group of companies ("Group") announced its financial performance today for the nine-month period which ended 31 March 2004. Consolidated profit before Irredeemable Non-cumulative Convertible Preference Shares (INCPS) dividend, taxation and zakat increased by 20% to RM455.9 million, while net profit expanded strongly by 38% to RM211.9 million, compared to RM153.8 million for the same period last year. Income from Skim Perbankan Islam (SPI) operations grew steadily by 33% during the nine-month period to RM92.6 million.

The Group’s shareholders’ funds and total assets increased to more than RM4.0 billion and RM76.8 billion respectively as at March 2004, while net tangible assets per share increased by 5% to RM1.55. The Group has also declared a second interim gross dividend of 3.5% to reward its shareholders.

Non-interest income improved by 4% to RM460.0 million, as the Group continued to capitalise on recovering equity market conditions. Subsidiary RHB Securities Sdn Bhd recorded strong improvements in performance and achieved a pre-tax profit of RM22.9 million for the nine-month period, compared to a loss of RM28.5 million for the same period last year.

Group loan loss provisions declined 33% to RM308.8 million while gross NPL volume remained stable in the financial quarter to March 2004. Pre-tax profit before INCPS dividend, taxation and zakat improved 20% to RM455.9 million.

For the Group, gross loan and advances experienced some growth during the quarter ended March 2004 to RM46.2 billion, benefiting from the increased level of economic activity in the financial quarter.

RHB Bank remained the Group’s largest profit contributing subsidiary, and recorded a 19% growth in pre-tax profit before INCPS dividend, taxation and zakat to RM303.6 million for the nine-month period ended 31 March 2004. The commercial bank is strongly capitalised, with a Risk-Weighted Capital Adequacy Ratio of 13.2% as at March 2004.

RHB Bank and related subsidiaries are well positioned to take advantage of continued growth. Innovative programmes for businesses and consumers alike will cater for SME and commercial client’s needs. For example, RHB Bank recently launched its "Programme Lending" product and "eHR2" platform, which will help to expand growth and manage costs at the same time for businesses. For consumers, selected trial bank branches in Subang and Kajang, for example, have remained open over the weekend to offer fresh financing and refinancing services to homeowners. The trials have been well received, and will continue to roll out throughout the country as RHB Bank consolidates market share as the second largest home lender in the nation.

Innovation in consumer credit will also extend to new credit card services, including the launch of a co-branded card, which rewards customers of Air Asia.

The Group, on a wider scale, will embark on a nation-wide road show to promote group-wide products and services to corporate, government and retail market segments, leveraging cross-selling synergies and CRM marketing opportunities.

Executive Chairman Dato Sri Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib said: "In line with the continued recovery of the Malaysian economy, the Group’s financial performance remained strong, with marked improvement across subsidiaries. The growth of RHB Bank and its subsidiaries is encouraging, with increased lending in consumer mortgages, vehicle loans, and credit cards, indicating we are able to grow in line with our customers’ needs."

He added: "We expect the Group to continue its strong performance for the year. Our merchant banking flagship, RHB Sakura Merchant Bankers, is making headway in the corporate sector, given recent successful bids for several corporate mandates including a capital raising exercise for Air Asia. We can expect expansion from our merchant banking services as the management team actively drives RHB Sakura further into the corporate sector."

"Competition remains fierce within the highly competitive banking environment, but we have in place key strategies to enhance market position. Improving risk management capabilities will also allow us to assess and quantify risk as we expand. We will continually look to developing people centric approaches for our customers, and find new ways to differentiate ourselves." he concluded.

Unaudited Consolidated Results for financial period ended 31 March 2004 for RHB Capital Berhad and Rashid Hussain Berhad are accessible @ www.rhb.com.my after midnight May 27, 2004. For easy reference, a table of financial highlights for RHB Capital Berhad follows:

RHB Capital Financial Highlights	31 Mar 2004	31 Mar 2003
	RM’000	RM’000
Financial Performance (9 months ended)
Operating profit (before loan loss provision)	763,143	844,991
Pre-tax profit (before INCPS dividend, taxation and zakat)	455,860	380,895
Net Profit	211,946	153,815
Balance Sheet
Net loans, advances, and financing	41,244,759	41,275,813
Net non-performing loans (‘NPL’)	3,801,313	3,848,173
Net NPL to net loans, advances, and financing	9.00%	9.04%
Deposits from customers	47,094,296	45,614,457
Total assets	76,803,267	69,091,707*
Shareholders’ equity	4,015,634	3,873,483*
Financial Ratios
Earnings per share (sen)	11.6	8.4
NTA per share (RM)	1.55	1.47*

* restated

This release contains forward-looking statements such as the outlook for the RHB group of companies. Although RHB believes that the expectations reflected in such future statements are reasonable at this time, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove correct. Actual performance may be materially different from that anticipated or described herein, and RHB’s financial and business plans may be subject to change.

A leader in financial products & services, the RHB group of companies (MSEB: RHBCAP) offers innovation & experience in corporate and consumer banking as well as asset management, securities, unit trusts and insurance. RHB has earned numerous awards, as selected by industry observers and editors, including recognition as "The Best Brokerage in Malaysia" by the editors of Asiamoney in November 2003. Today, RHB managers and staff serve customers via a network of almost 300 branches and outlets in Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand and Singapore.

www.rhb.com.my

For Press contact: Chong Ee Rong at Tel: 60 - 3 - 27188267 or

Tisha Zarina at Tel: 60 – 3 - 2718 8269.

For Investor contact: Sonny Lim at Tel: 60 – 3 - 92852233