PRNewswire
Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia], September 18: Hong Leong Bank("HLB" or the "Bank") has been named Best SME Bank in Malaysia at the prestigious Euromoney Awards for Excellence for the second consecutive year. This latest recognition comes after the Bank received similar recognitions by The Asian Banker and Asian Banking & Finance this year, culminating a remarkable year where HLB's consistent market leadership and unparalleled excellence in SME banking have been celebrated across three esteemed industry platforms.
HLB's SME customer base has increased 18% year-on-year ("y-o-y"), rising to over 320,000 customers in 2024 across both borrowing and non-borrowing segments. This was supported by the Bank consistently providing innovative financing solutions, notably enabling over RM280 million being approved for over 360 SMEs through the Government Guarantee Scheme MADANI 1.0 ("GGSM 1.0") program in 2024 and will continue to provide more financing via GGSM 2.0 in 2025 and beyond. HLB has also enabled full-digital onboarding for business accounts, including sole proprietorships, and provides enhanced business and foreign currency accounts for SMEs.
Kevin Lam, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of HLB commented, "At HLB, our core purpose as a financial institution is simple: to empower our customers to grow their wealth. We believe that by championing the growth of SMEs, who form the backbone of the Malaysian economy, we are directly contributing to the nation's prosperity.
"Our commitment to the SME community transcends traditional banking. We have a clear vision of the bigger picture, positioning ourselves not merely as a service provider but as a true value-adding partner. Through a powerful combination of innovative digital tools and expert advisory, we enable our SME customers to navigate a global economic landscape defined by continuous change and digital evolution. By forging strategic partnerships with both our clients and key industry players, we bridge the gap between opportunity and solution, empowering our customers to pursue their diversified business objectives while confidently managing industry headwinds and market trends.
"Therefore, these recent industry recognitions are a powerful testament to the trust and deep partnership we share with our SME customers, reaffirming our unwavering commitment to our goal of becoming the Best Run Bank in Malaysia."
A key driving force of HLB's SME banking success is its digital leadership, with HLB becoming the first bank in Malaysia to introduce fully digital eKYC onboarding for sole proprietors, which can be completed in under 10 minutes. Further enhancements such as tablet-based partnership onboarding, digital onboarding for foreign currency accounts, and the integration of Weixin Pay have further strengthened accessibility and convenience for SMEs, alongside improved advisory through expanded SME cash and FX teams and regional SME centres.
HLB also has operations in Vietnam, Singapore, Cambodia and Hong Kong SAR, reflecting its presence across key regional markets.
The Bank ended its Financial Year 2025 (ended 30 June 2025) with a 7.5% y-o-y growth in loans to domestic business enterprises, which has reached over RM70 billion. HLB has also expanded its loans and financing to SMEs by 8.1% y-o-y to over RM40 billion, while its community SME banking portfolio also grew by 10.4% y-o-y.
For more information, please visit https://www.hlb.com.my/en/business-banking/group-sme-banking.html
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