In the first half of 2026, the banking sector finds itself entrenched in a cycle defined by narrowing interest margins and sluggish expansion. Nationwide, commercial banks saw net profits dip by 0.57%, with the average net interest margin languishing at just 1.41%. While non-performing loan ratios have stabilized or slightly declined, structural pressures persist. State-owned behemoths leveraged their low-cost deposit bases to maintain stability, yet joint-stock banks and rural commercial banks witnessed profit contractions of 3.42% and 12.56%, respectively. The city commercial bank segment, however, emerged as a rare bright spot—averaging a 7.41% profit increase and a modest 2-basis-point rebound in net interest margin to 1.40%.
Amidst this divergence, one western-based city commercial bank warrants particular attention. In August 2026, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) released its interim report: operating income reached RMB 8.486 billion, up 10.79% year-on-year; net profit hit RMB 3.767 billion, a 10.97% increase; and net profit attributable to shareholders rose 10.29% to RMB 3.518 billion. Achieving double-digit growth across all three metrics simultaneously is an anomaly in today's banking landscape. Extending the observation window further underscores the rarity of this performance.
The First Coordinate: Sustained Growth
Among the 42 A-share listed banks, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) stands alone as the only institution to have recorded both revenue and net profit growth exceeding 10% for four consecutive quarters. In Q2 2026 alone, its operating income and attributable net profit grew by 10.10% and 10.17%, respectively, reflecting a steady and orderly upward trajectory. Over a longer horizon, revenue growth has accelerated progressively—from 3.54% in 2024, to 10.48% in 2025, and further to 10.79% in the first half of 2026. Within the 17 A-share city commercial banks, only Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963), along with peers like Ningbo Bank and Qilu Bank, achieved this "double-ten" growth. In the profit growth rankings across all 42 A-share listed banks, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) secured the fourth position.
The Second Coordinate: Asset Quality
As of the end of June, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) reported a non-performing loan ratio of 1.11%, down 0.03 percentage points from the end of the previous year, marking a four-year low. The proportion of special-mention loans also decreased by 0.13 percentage points to 1.81%. The ratio of NPLs to loans overdue by more than 90 days stood at 1.16, indicating a proactive approach to risk identification rather than a reactive one. Placing this in an industry context, the contrast is stark: the national average NPL ratio for commercial banks is 1.52%, and for city commercial banks it is a high 1.87%. Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963)'s 1.11% is a full 41 basis points below the national average and 76 basis points below the city commercial bank average—less than 60% of its peer group's figure.
Its provision coverage ratio is equally impressive. At 247.31%, it rose 1.73 percentage points from the start of the year, surpassing the national average by 44 percentage points and the city commercial bank average by roughly 76 percentage points. The simultaneous occurrence of declining NPL and special-mention ratios alongside a rising provision coverage buffer—while still expanding the balance sheet—is a rare feat. This "quality with quantity" logic is further validated in the inclusive small and micro-business lending segment, where both the NPL and special-mention ratios continued to decline, and the NPL formation rate hit a three-year low.
The Third Coordinate: Operational Efficiency
In the first half, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) posted a net interest margin of 1.46%, up 7 basis points year-on-year, with its net interest spread rising 5 basis points to 1.40%. This recovery is seven times greater than the industry average improvement of 1 basis point, and 3.5 times the city commercial bank sector's average rebound of 2 basis points. While the broader industry grapples to maintain a 1.4% margin, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) has achieved this through substantive improvements in liability costs: the deposit payout rate for corporate clients fell 41 basis points from the start of the year, and the average cost of retail time deposits dropped from 2.86% to 2.39%.
The bank's net interest income surged 26.04% to RMB 7.389 billion, fueled by a 7.83% rise in interest income and a 3.40% reduction in interest expenses. Its annualized weighted average ROE improved to 12.03%, up 0.51 percentage points year-on-year—the second-largest increase among A-share listed city commercial banks. Achieving this ROE uplift in an environment where the industry net interest margin is a mere 1.41% signals that capital return efficiency is on an upward trajectory. Concurrently, total assets for the group and legal entity reached RMB 1.1089 trillion and RMB 1.0428 trillion, respectively, both crossing the trillion-yuan threshold. This expansion was supported by retained earnings and the conversion of RMB 1.437 billion in convertible bonds (1.51 million shares), adding nearly RMB 1.5 billion in core Tier-1 capital to fuel future growth.
The Fourth Coordinate: Competitive Edge
Compared to leading eastern city commercial banks, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) may lack advantages in customer base, talent density, and traditional geographic positioning. Yet, on several growth and efficiency metrics, it holds its own. The bank's per-capita efficiency is notably strong: in H1 2026, its per-capita operating income and net profit stood at RMB 1.5625 million and RMB 693,500, respectively—placing it in the same league as Bank Of Nanjing (RMB 1.7867 million / RMB 777,100) and Bank Of Ningbo (RMB 1.7376 million / RMB 701,200). Given the objective disparities in GDP per capita and financial resource density between the west and east, this level of efficiency is a standout result.
This efficiency is underpinned by three clear competitive pillars. First, strategic geographic alignment: Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) directs credit to key nodes of national strategies such as the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle and the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, with over RMB 140 billion in credit support for the former, RMB 60 billion in financing for the latter, RMB 106.9 billion in green finance, and more than RMB 41 billion in manufacturing loans. Second, a pioneering digital transformation: anchored on its "456" framework, the bank has built a generative AI management platform, deployed the "Tongyi Qianwen" large language model, and added seven new application scenarios like an "Intelligent Compliance Assistant." Its mobile field operations cover marketing, credit approval, and counter services, completing over 1.409 million transactions. In data governance, it has integrated over 1,100 internal data points and 60 external sources, supporting over 320 million data usages. Third, a differentiated moat in inclusive small and micro-business lending: despite pressure from large banks moving downmarket, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963)'s inclusive micro-loan balance grew to RMB 77.647 billion, ranking first among listed city commercial banks in the west. It has also received the highest "Grade 1" rating for small and micro enterprise financial services from the local financial regulator for seven consecutive years, making it the only local legal entity bank in Chongqing to achieve this.
The Fifth Coordinate: Market Validation
In 2025, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963)'s A-shares rose 21.64%, ranking fourth among all 42 A-share listed banks, while its H-shares climbed 37.26%. In May 2026, its A-share price hit a near five-year high. It is one of only eight banks among the 42 to have generated positive returns for four consecutive years. Shareholder actions also speak volumes. In June 2026, the bank's third-largest shareholder, Dah Sing Bank, invested HK$241.5 million to acquire 30 million H-shares via block trade, increasing its stake to 13.48%. Separately, Chongqing Expressway Group increased its holdings by 151 million shares through convertible bond conversions, bringing its total A-share ownership to 4.998% of total shares.
In terms of shareholder returns, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) distributed RMB 1.599 billion in cash dividends for fiscal 2025, maintaining a high payout ratio of 30%—a level it has consistently upheld for five consecutive years since its A-share listing. On the institutional front, major brokerages including CITIC Securities, China Merchants Securities, Zhongtai Securities, Guotai Haitong Securities, Galaxy Securities, and Zheshang Securities have all issued positive ratings. Huatai Securities has gone further, explicitly stating the bank "deserves a valuation premium" and assigning a 2026 target PB of 0.77x for A-shares and 0.54x for H-shares. The convergence of a strong share price performance, insider buying, and favorable analyst ratings underscores that the market is not just watching but voting with real capital.
Conclusion
Among 42 A-share listed banks, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) is the sole institution to sustain "double-ten" growth in both revenue and net profit for four straight quarters. Among its 17 city commercial bank peers, it stands virtually alone in simultaneously achieving an NPL ratio at just 60% of the sector average, a net interest margin improvement seven times the industry norm, and a second-ranked ROE enhancement. A western city commercial bank, devoid of eastern geographic advantages, has used a set of "rare-grade" metrics to prove its competitive mettle. As banking sector bifurcation intensifies, Bank Of Chongqing Co.,Ltd. (601963) has firmly established itself as a key player worthy of in-depth attention.