The five major banks have the lowest bad debt rates, with revenue growth of 4.28%, the top among peers! A century-old Bank of China’s breakthrough against the odds

Ask AI · How does Bank of China’s globalization strategy boost revenue growth against the tide?

Author | Xu Chuanghao

Editor | Wang Na

With a century of history, how did Bank of China achieve the No. 1 position among state-owned banks in revenue growth in 2025?

In 2025, the global economy is marked by “weak recovery with high differentiation.” Growth remains sluggish in major economies, inflationary pressure persists, and geopolitical conflicts continue, bringing many uncertainties to global financial markets. Meanwhile, China’s economy is in a critical period of transformation and upgrading, with pains from structural adjustments becoming apparent. Some industries and businesses face operating pressures, imposing higher requirements on banks’ risk management and profitability.

Against this backdrop, Bank of China (abbreviated as BOC) adheres to the overall tone of “progress while maintaining stability,” coordinating development and security, leveraging its own strengths, and proactively integrating into national strategies. In serving the new development paradigm, BOC demonstrates a distinct sense of financial responsibility. In a complex environment, BOC delivered a bright annual performance characterized by a three-dimensional balance of “volume, price, and risk.” Multiple core indicators performed strongly among its peers:

According to BOC’s 2025 annual report, the bank’s total assets increased by 9.4% from the end of the prior year to 38.36 trillion yuan. During the reporting period, operating income was 383.6k yuan, up 4.28% year over year, with the highest growth rate among the six largest state-owned and joint-stock banks, and attributable net profit was 659.87B yuan, up 2.18% year over year. While profitability steadily improved, BOC further consolidated asset quality: the non-performing loan ratio was only 1.23%, the lowest among the five major state-owned banks, and was 27 basis points lower than the industry average of 1.5% disclosed by the National Financial Regulatory Administration for the same period-end.

Behind these results is BOC’s steadfast commitment to the philosophy of “finance for the people,” a deepening of its globalization development strategy, and a vivid practice of the requirements for high-quality development. In the 2025 annual report speech of BOC’s Chairman, Ge Haijiao stated that BOC has steadily advanced high-quality development, maintained solid progress in operating performance, and ensured effective and strong risk control. Its capability for global layout and international competitiveness has continued to improve, and the group’s major targets under the “14th Five-Year Plan” were completed on schedule.

Operational resilience stands out: revenue growth of 4.28%, No. 1 among the six largest banks; non-performing loan ratio narrows by 2 bp to 1.23%

For the banking industry, 2025 is both a year of challenges and a year of opportunities. Facing overlapping challenges such as margin compression and a potential rise in risks, BOC—built on a century-long foundation—delivered a compelling annual performance characterized by balanced development under the “volume-price-risk” approach:

On “volume,” growth and structure are more optimal. At the end of 2025, BOC’s total assets reached 38.36 trillion yuan, up 9.4% from the end of the prior year. While the scale expanded steadily, BOC also continued to optimize its asset structure, directing credit resources toward key areas of the real economy and weaker links. Data show that in 2025, BOC’s total customer loans and advances reached 23.45 trillion yuan, up 8.61% year over year. Among them, BOC’s technology loans balance exceeded 4.8 trillion yuan; as a share of BOC’s corporate loans, it accounted for more than one-third. On a comparable basis with peers, it ranked first. In the domestic corporate green loans and loans to private enterprises and manufacturing-oriented loans, BOC saw year-over-year growth of 28.41%, 18.35%, and 17.18% respectively. This reflects BOC’s sense of responsibility of “finance for the people” and serving the real economy.

On “price,” stabilization and a broader source. Through refined pricing and business diversification, BOC achieved stabilization in net interest margin and rapid growth in non-interest income, improving both the quality and stability of earnings. In 2025, BOC累计 realized operating income of 243.02B yuan and attributable net profit of 383.6k yuan, up 4.28% and 2.18% year over year respectively. Its operating income growth rate ranked first among the six largest banks, and its net profit growth rate ranked second.

Regarding net interest income specifically, BOC’s net interest margin was 1.26%, remaining unchanged at the level seen at the end of the previous two quarters. At the same time, BOC is accelerating business diversification, with non-interest income rising 19.21% year over year, accounting for 33.21% of operating income—reaching a record high— up 4.16 percentage points from the same period last year. Of this, the net fee and commission income was 234.5k yuan, up 7.37% year over year. Among it, agency business fees became the main engine of non-interest income growth, rising 26.67% to 48k yuan. This effectively reduced BOC’s reliance on traditional deposit-and-loan business and enhanced earnings stability.

On “risk,” controllable and a stronger base. BOC always places risk prevention and control first and has built a comprehensive, whole-staff, end-to-end risk management system. At the end of 2025, BOC’s non-performing loan ratio was 1.23%, still the lowest among the five major state-owned banks. Since 2020, it has continued to reduce non-performing loans for years, narrowing by 0.21 percentage points compared with that time. The allowance coverage ratio was 200.37%, staying at a reasonable and adequate level.

In 2025, BOC also supplemented capital through multiple channels, with the capital adequacy ratio remaining at a relatively high level, strengthening the last line of defense against risks. As of the end of 2025, BOC’s core tier-one capital adequacy ratio, tier-one capital adequacy ratio, and capital adequacy ratio were 12.53%, 14.34%, and 18.85% respectively—each clearly above regulatory requirements—providing sufficient capital support for the bank’s sustained development of its business.

Boost consumption and expand domestic demand: loan balance in key areas of consumer services exceeds 200 billion yuan; roughly 20% growth for the full year

In 2025, expanding domestic demand and boosting consumption became the main theme of China’s economic development, and also an important focus for the banking industry to serve the real economy and strengthen the domestic large circulation. The Central Economic Work Conference clearly called for “efforts to expand domestic demand and play the fundamental role of consumption and the key role of investment.” However, given that the foundation for economic recovery is not yet solid and residents’ consumption confidence needs to be improved, consumption stimulus faces many challenges.

For a long time, BOC has actively responded to national calls, treating boosting consumption and expanding domestic demand as a key task for the whole bank. By adopting a system-based layout to improve the quality and efficiency of consumer finance services, it has become an important force in energizing the growth of domestic demand.

To boost consumption, first comes strengthening residents’ capacity and confidence in consumption. BOC understands that only by getting the public’s “money bags” to feel fuller and reducing worries about the future can consumption have a steady source of vitality. To this end, BOC fully focuses on two signature businesses—wealth management and pension finance—to protect residents’ assets with professional services. In the wealth management segment, BOC continuously enriches its wealth management product system, covering multiple categories including wealth management products, funds, and insurance. Its year-end domestic agency sales balance for individual wealth management reached 1.54 trillion yuan, up 11.8% from the end of the prior year. In the pension finance segment, BOC created the “BOC Yinfa” brand, providing various types of individual pension financial products. It also issued the BOC • China Tielong Social Security Card. At period end, the number of individual account management for enterprise annuities at BOC was 4.5973 million households; the scale of entrusted pension funds was 659.87B yuan; and the scale of pension custody and operation funds was 1.32 trillion yuan.

Cross-border finance is BOC’s “signature business card,” and also a unique advantage in enabling inbound consumption. With China’s continued expansion of opening-up, BOC has transformed into a “shaper” of inbound consumption, providing inbound travelers with convenient, efficient, and safe payment and consumption experiences—launching a specialized “Come to China” APP for overseas visitors, offering one-stop services for eating, staying, traveling, touring, and shopping. Global installations exceeded one million. In key cities, BOC promoted “wallet-with-change” services to meet small cash needs of overseas individuals, with more than 1,700 self-service currency exchange machines and foreign currency proxy exchange points.

Focusing on the trend of consumption upgrading, BOC also precisely focused on three major areas: commodity consumption, service consumption, and emerging consumption, to promote iterative upgrading in consumption quality. In the commodity consumption segment, it launched special campaigns such as “trade in your old for a new” and the “national subsidy marketing season.” Twenty-nine branches launched credit-card national-subsidy special activities, with cumulative transaction value of 243.02B yuan. Consumption-loan interest subsidy policies benefited more than 600k customers, helping expand large-ticket consumption such as home renovation and automobiles. In the service consumption segment, BOC accurately targeted 11 categories including accommodation and dining, cultural tourism and leisure, and elderly care and health care. The loan balance in key areas of service consumption exceeded 200 billion yuan, with roughly 20% growth for the full year, driving a shift toward a transformation where consumption increasingly emphasizes services. In the emerging consumption segment, the “BOC-branded gathering and benefits day” campaign benefited more than 400 million person-times. It built interest subsidies for green travel and local-feature scenario creation, releasing vitality for emerging consumption.

From enhancing consumer capacity to optimizing consumption scenarios; from serving domestic residents to enabling inbound tourists; from traditional consumption to emerging consumption—BOC connects the entire value chain of consumer finance through comprehensive, multi-tier financial services. In the industry context where expanding domestic demand becomes a national strategy, BOC uses systems thinking to build an ecosystem for consumer finance, becoming a core force in activating the consumer market and serving the domestic-demand strategy.

Strengthen professional advantages: cross-border RMB settlement volume of 17.7 trillion yuan

As a commercial bank with the highest level of globalization within China, BOC relies on its globally distributed institutional network and its professional cross-border financial service capabilities. In the new development paradigm of dual circulation, it demonstrates the responsibility and担当 of a major state-owned bank, contributing financial strength to building a new institutional framework for a more open economy.

Globalization network layout is the core foundation of BOC’s cross-border financial services. After a century of development, BOC has built a financial services network covering the world. Overseas institutions are located in 64 countries and regions, including 45 countries along the “Belt and Road” that co-built the initiative. In major international financial centers, it has set up institutions. In Shanghai and the Hong Kong international financial centers, it has notable first-mover advantages. Its own overseas institutions cover the second-highest level globally, and first among domestic banks. It has become a financial bridge connecting China and the world.

Cross-border settlement and trade finance are important tools for BOC to help the real economy “go global.” BOC continues to optimize its service system and help stabilize the scale and improve the structure of foreign trade. In 2025, BOC’s domestic institutions handled international settlement volumes exceeding USD 4.45 trillion, and cross-border RMB settlement volume reached 17.7 trillion yuan, increasing 9.56% and 9.43% year over year respectively. For new foreign trade business models such as cross-border e-commerce, it built a settlement service system featuring “globalized response and full-chain support.” The full-year settlement business volume for cross-border e-commerce reached 1.18 trillion yuan, up 45.07% year over year, providing financial support for nurturing new drivers for foreign trade.

International use of the RMB is an important opportunity for BOC’s globalization development. In 2025, the process of international use of the RMB accelerated, with the scope of RMB usage expanding continuously in areas such as cross-border trade settlement, investment and financing, and reserve currencies. This brings banks new points of business growth. As a key force in promoting the international use of the RMB, BOC continues to consolidate its leading advantage in cross-border RMB. It supports expanding the global coverage of CIPS; the number of direct participants in CIPS is 46, and it has expanded the number of indirect participants to over 700. At present, the People’s Bank of China has increased the total number of RMB clearing banks to 18, helping the RMB play a larger role globally in trade, investment, and reserves.

In 2026, Bank of China will mark the 20th anniversary of its listing of A+H shares. Since the listing, Bank of China’s total assets have grown by 6.2 times, and cumulative dividends have exceeded RMB 97 billion, providing substantial returns to the country and to shareholders. Looking ahead, at its earnings release conference, BOC’s President Zhang Hui said that Bank of China is confident in seizing strategic opportunities and responding to various risk challenges, so as to keep the globalization business maintaining a good development momentum. All cadres and employees of Bank of China, both at home and abroad, will pool their strengths, act with pragmatism and responsibility, and continue to strive, to repay the trust and support of customers, investors, and people from all sectors of society with continuously improving operating performance.

As a century-old major bank, BOC always moves in step with national development and advances in the same direction as changes in the times. In a new stage of development, BOC will take a more open posture, stronger professional capabilities, and higher-quality services to make new and greater contributions to serving China’s path to modernization and promoting global economic development. BOC’s story is a microcosm of the reform and development of China’s banking sector, and also a vivid witness of Chinese financial strength going global.