Revenue and Net Profit of Oi Wah Record Double-digit Growth respectively in FP2024

First Premium Service Center Launched at MTR Station

Strategic cooperation to develop business

Financial Highlights

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – October 26, 2023 – The Board of Directors of
Oi Wah Pawnshop Credit Holdings Limited (HKEx stock code: 1319.HK, the “Group” or “Oi Wah”) announced its interim results and financial position. For the six months ended August 31, 2023 (“FP2024”), the Group recorded revenue of approximately HK$90.2 million and profit attributable to shareholders of the Company of approximately HK$49.6 million Hong Kong dollars. During the period, the net interest margin improved by 0.7 percentage points to 16.3%.

During the period, earnings per share were 2.6 Hong Kong cents. The board recommends an interim dividend of 1.04 Hong Kong cents.

Activity Report

Mortgage activity

During FP2024, interest income from the Group’s mortgage business increased by 10.4% to approximately HK$50.0 million, accounting for approximately 55.4% of revenue Group total. As at 31 August 2023, the gross mortgage receivable amounted to approximately HK$849.1 million and during the period, total new mortgage loans granted amounted to approximately HK$282.7 million Kong. The net interest margin of mortgage lending activities increased by 0.8 percentage points to 11.4% and 52 new cases of mortgage lending transactions were recorded during FP2024.

The Group continued to maintain prudent monitoring of its loan portfolio, particularly on the repayment activities of its existing clients. As a result of these efforts, no bad debts were recorded during the period. In FP2024, the loan-to-value ratio for the first mortgage was approximately 54.9%, while the overall loan-to-value ratio for subordinate mortgages was approximately 54.2%, including the loan-to-value ratio of subordinated mortgages that the Group participated in was approximately 13.3%.

Pawnbroking business

During FP2024, interest income generated by the pawnbroking business increased by 4.9% to approximately HK$36.3 million. This is mainly due to the increase in the average month-end balance for gross pawn loan receivables from March to August, from around HK$183.2 million for FP2023 to around HK$190.5 million. Hong Kong dollars for FP2024. The Group also recorded a disposal gain on the assets taken over of approximately HK$3.9 million, an increase of 85.7%.

During the period, the Group continued to devote resources to advertising and promotion, in order to improve the visibility of the Group’s brand. Such efforts have generated demand for one-on-one appointment services for pawn loans exceeding HK$0.1 million. During FP2024, the Group recorded 345 pawn loan transactions with an amount exceeding HK$0.1 million and an average loan amount of approximately HK$10,500 per transaction.

Outlook

With a strong presence in Hong Kong’s pawnbroking industry for nearly half a century, Oi Wah has always been at the forefront of industrial innovation, with a determined commitment to modernizing the sector pawnbrokers. The Group recently launched a premium service center at MTR East Tsim Sha Tsui Station on the Tuen Ma Line, marking a significant milestone for the Group in establishing our presence within the Hong Kong rail system, one of the busiest and busiest places in the city. Our new store design seamlessly blends modern aesthetics with traditional pawn shop features. Supplemented by our state-of-the-art mobile app, customers can get preliminary collateral assessment, loan assessment and loan application, etc. By digitizing the entire pawn loan application process, we offer a one-stop, efficient and streamlined lending solution, tailored to the evolving needs of our customers. The Council believes that the pawnbroking industry is continually adapting to meet the changing demands of modern consumers. The Group will continue to break with tradition by introducing more innovative services for our customers.

Given current global inflation and monetary tightening policies, various asset classes have experienced increased volatility. Therefore, private credit backed by real estate has emerged as an alternative capital investment option. Leveraging our real estate expertise, Oi Wah has strategically partnered with
PACM Group (Holdings) Limited (“PACM Group“) to venture into this new business opportunity. This partnership marks our entry into the real estate private credit institutional investment management sector, with investment strategies including asset-backed direct lending, acquisition non-performing debt, acquisition financing, extended senior financing, project financing, bridge financing and other debt-related strategies in Hong Kong and overseas. The Board of Directors of the Company believes that cooperation provides an invaluable opportunity for efficient allocation of resources, simultaneously contributing to the expansion of the foreign market, widening of sources of income and We firmly believe that our prudent management approach and careful selection process will strengthen our investment management activities, ensuring the protection of investors’ assets and maximizing returns.

Mr. Edward Chan, Chairman and CEO of the Companysaid: “Despite the uncertainty in the macroeconomic environment, the Group remains optimistic about the Hong Kong lending market and maintains its cautious pace of expansion, including the launch of the premium service center at the MTR station and the strategic cooperation with the PACM group in the reference period. We will continually explore and pursue different business opportunities to increase our market share and maximize shareholder returns.

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