Money Briefs: ICBC writes off $8.6b in bad loans

ICBC writes off $8.6b in bad loans

Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world's biggest lender by assets, reported the first decline in its bad-loan ratio since 2012 in the second quarter as the bank raced to dispose of non-performing credit.

ICBC wrote off 42 billion yuan (S$8.6 billion) in loans in the first half, 35 per cent more than a year earlier, an earnings statement showed. Non-performing loans as a proportion of total credit declined to 1.55 per cent in the second quarter from 1.66 per cent in the first.


Sony buys Ten Sports for $525m

India's Zee Entertainment Enterprises has agreed to sell its sports broadcasting business to Sony Pictures Networks for US$385 million (S$525 million).

Ten Sports holds broadcast rights to major cricket boards in South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and West Indies. It also holds rights for football's Uefa Champions League and Europa League, among others.

"The acquisition will strengthen our offering for viewers... complementing our existing portfolio," Mr N.P. Singh, chief executive of Sony Pictures Networks India, said in a statement.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 01, 2016, with the headline Money Briefs: ICBC writes off $8.6b in bad loans. Subscribe