Taishin Financial Holding Co (
The first half earnings rose 68 percent from the same period a year ago and represents 59 percent of the company's full-year forecast of NT$10.05 billion.
Taishin Financial, which is owned by the Wu family, offers banking and brokerage services. Its most profitable unit is Taishin International Bank (台新銀行), which posted net income of NT$4.98 billion for the first half of the year.
Last week the bank said it had agreed to pay NT$1.4 billion to acquire small rival Hsinchu Tenth Credit Cooperative (新竹十信), effective Oct. 18.
The acquisition will boost the number of the bank's branches from 89 to 101.
Julius Chen (陳淮舟), president of Taishin Financial, told an investors conference yesterday that the deal will help increase the bank's market share and customer base.
Still, Taishin Financial saw its second quarter after-tax earnings drop to NT$2.68 billion from NT$3.23 billion in the first quarter.
The holding company attributed the decline to the sluggish stock market and rising interest rates, Justin Tsai (蔡榮棟), general manager of Taishin Financial's wholesale banking group, told investors.
"We're positive about the economy this year, but as the outlook is not as good as expected after the presidential election, we now see that both the equity and bond markets are turning conservative," said Lin Keh-hsiao (林克孝), president of Taishin Financial's Wealth Management Group.
Lin said the company has placed more emphasis on protecting its existing capital gains, while waiting for opportunities to enlarge the gain, especially in the last quarter of the year.
At a press conference held before the investor conference, reporters focused on an internal dispute at Taishin Financial over the leadership of subsidiary Taiwan Securities Group (台証證券).
Taishin chairman Thomas Wu (吳東亮) unexpectedly dismissed several board members last week, including group president Lee Hsin-yi (李新一) and executive board director Chan Ping-fa (詹炳發), both associates of his younger brother Eric Wu (吳東昇), who is chairman of the Taiwan Securities Group.
Chen told reporters that the outgoing board members held different opinions about running the company and had hampered the execution of some projects that were initiated prior to their becoming board members and so a reshuffle was necessary.
"The personnel adjustment was done out of professional considerations, rather than a family row as some people have misinterpreted it," Chen said.
Wu Kuang-hsiung (吳光雄), former chairman of Taiwan Ratings Corp (中華信評), the local arm of Standard & Poor's, was appointed to head Taiwan Securities.
He told the press conference that he and the company's staff will try their best to create more shareholder value.
Meanwhile, Taishin Financial shares advanced NT$0.3 to close at NT$26.2 on the TAIEX yesterday.
Semiconductor business between Taiwan and the US is a “win-win” model for both sides given the high level of complementarity, the government said yesterday responding to tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Home to the world’s largest contract chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), Taiwan is a key link in the global technology supply chain for companies such as Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp. Trump said on Monday he plans to impose tariffs on imported chips, pharmaceuticals and steel in an effort to get the producers to make them in the US. “Taiwan and the US semiconductor and other technology industries
SMALL AND EFFICIENT: The Chinese AI app’s initial success has spurred worries in the US that its tech giants’ massive AI spending needs re-evaluation, a market strategist said Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) start-up DeepSeek’s (深度求索) eponymous AI assistant rocketed to the top of Apple Inc’s iPhone download charts, stirring doubts in Silicon Valley about the strength of the US’ technological dominance. The app’s underlying AI model is widely seen as competitive with OpenAI and Meta Platforms Inc’s latest. Its claim that it cost much less to train and develop triggered share moves across Asia’s supply chain. Chinese tech firms linked to DeepSeek, such as Iflytek Co (科大訊飛), surged yesterday, while chipmaking tool makers like Advantest Corp slumped on the potential threat to demand for Nvidia Corp’s AI accelerators. US stock
The US Federal Reserve is expected to announce a pause in rate cuts on Wednesday, as policymakers look to continue tackling inflation under close and vocal scrutiny from US President Donald Trump. The Fed cut its key lending rate by a full percentage point in the final four months of last year and indicated it would move more cautiously going forward amid an uptick in inflation away from its long-term target of 2 percent. “I think they will do nothing, and I think they should do nothing,” Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis former president Jim Bullard said. “I think the
‘LASER-FOCUSED’: Trump pledged tariffs on specific sectors, including semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, steel, copper and aluminum, and perhaps even cars US President Donald Trump said he wants to enact across-the-board tariffs that are “much bigger” than 2.5 percent, the latest in a string of signals that he is preparing widespread levies to reshape US supply chains. “I have it in my mind what it’s going to be but I won’t be setting it yet, but it’ll be enough to protect our country,” Trump told reporters on Monday night. Asked about a report that incoming US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent favored starting with a global rate of 2.5 percent, Trump said he did not think Bessent supported that and would not
RSS