Welcome to the ICBC 2021 Interim Results Announcement. I'm from the Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations Department, Deputy General Manager, Qian Zhonghua. Thank you for attending this meeting. ICBC has been highly focusing on the management of investor relations and has maintained frequent, frank, and professional communication. Affected by this pandemic, this meeting will be presented via both video link and call conference. Prior to this, we have also collected investor relations via email. We're honored to have ICBC Vice Chairman, President Liao Lin, Vice President Zhang Wenwu, Vice President Xu Shouben, Board Secretary Guan Xueqing, Chief Business Officer Song Jianhua with us, and other major responsible persons of relevant departments of the headquarters. They will be having frank communications and interactions with you.
Meanwhile, non-executive directors Lu Yongzhen, Zheng Fuqing, Feng Weidong, Cao Liqun, Chen Yifang, Anthony Neoh, Yang Shaoxin, Wei Lin will be attending this meeting online. We will give the floor to the Board Secretary, Mr. Guan Xueqing, to present the ICBC 2021 interim results and the highlights.
I'd like to introduce the first half of 2021 interim results. Adhere to the theme of quality development. We, based on the strategic guideline and solidified foundation with risk control, talent-oriented development, as well as our development directions, have attained good direction, beating expectation, and better than prior period development results. We have made breakthroughs. Big is the future. Our total assets has exceeded CNY 35 trillion. Have maintained the top one ranking of the globe. Big is also our big strength.
ICBC has achieved major advantages in multiple areas to provide financial services to our clients in terms of all levels, all around the globe, and all other services. Stability is one of the features of our operation. We have gained secure development of our risk and sustainable development, as well as new momentums. We have boosted our management innovation and technological innovation. We have boosted the digital transformation, and of our bank is outperforming other peers, and has gained trust from our clients. We have devoted to build a world-class financial enterprises with global competitiveness. The second, the quality and efficiency of our operation has been improved. The income of our bank has been on exceeding CNY 426 billion, net profit of CNY 164.5 billion, ROE 11.9%, up by. The NPL ratio is 1.54%. The overdue ratio, 1.33%. See the difference, CNY -41.1 billion, breaking a record low.
The provision coverage, 191.97%, up by 11.29 percentage points. We have well contained the interest spread of our bank. NIM stayed at 2.12%, down by 3 bp on the prior period. The change magnitude has been outperforming our peers. Capital adequacy ratio was 17.1%, leading the peers up by 13 bp Over the last half year, the global pandemic is still evolving. External environment is increasingly severe and complicated. ICBC has adheres to the theme of high-quality development, maintained good quality of development. We have made new advantages in promoting key strategies. Advantageous business has remained relative edge. For institutional and interbank deposits has remained number one among peers. For corporate finance, clients have reached over 9,602,000 more. Loans of corporate balance reached CNY 12.1 trillion, up by 9%. Corporate deposits, CNY 13.31 trillion, up by 4.4%. For transaction banking, it's CNY 8.85 trillion. Underwriting agency and investment has been outperforming the peers.
Settlement finance, we have gained over CNY 21.95 billion income, up by 8.6%. For the number one personal bank strategy, personal financial AUM has reaching CNY 16.6 trillion, excluding security assets, has broken a record high and leading the market. Personal deposits, CNY 12.5 trillion, up by 7.1%. Personal finance profit before taxations occupies 46.8%, up by 5.5 percentage points. For the preferred bank strategy for foreign exchange business, we have been maintaining the first position in a lot of foreign exchange businesses. For the strategy for sharpening competitive edge in key areas, Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, Yangtze River Delta, Greater Bay Area. In those five key areas, the sum of our loan balance has been up by 6.2%, reaching CNY 13 trillion. The urban-rural collaborative development strategy, the offline county level coverage has been up to 85%. Over 150 agriculture supported financing products was launched.
ICBC adheres to strategic legacy and innovation, bringing our strengths to make up for our weaknesses and laying a solid foundation. We have promote the implementation of our new three-year action plan, and has formed a brand new strategic system whose value is just emerging. The third, our market competitiveness has welcomed new progress. ICBC's adaptiveness, competitiveness, and inclusiveness has been up and improved. At the end of June, the RMB loans balance has added CNY 1.3 trillion, breaking a record high. The technology, green development, manufacturing, strategic emerging industry has gained leading peers loan scale. Real estate loans was down from the beginning of the year. Deposits has attained collaborative development. Deposits of clients CNY 27 trillion, up by CNY 1.5 trillion, up by 5.8%. The personal deposits has been up by 7.1%. ICBC has well managed the intensive costs of deposits.
The deposit interest rate declined by 2 bp to 1.61%. Client base has consolidated. Our customer netting project has been implemented so as to improve the contribution and loyalty of our clients. The total amount of individual clients has reached 690 million. Private banking customers has reached 0.19 million, and a cloud ICBC has been constructed to improve the number of client individual mobile banking clients. In terms of institutional clients in financial, social security, and interbanking sector, has remained its edge. The fourth is GBC collaboration. By creating a close chain of customers, funds, and info, our bank has turned data flow into holdings. We have established a lot of business scenarios, over 5,000. With the additional 6,000 government clients and additional 100,000 business clients and additional 18 million consumption clients, we have gained much more deposits. The fifth, high quality development of inclusive finance.
We have optimized our structures. The first time borrower has increased by 40%, and unsecured quick lending for operation has up by 70%. We have soundly controlled the risk, and ERM has opened up new horizons. Over the last half year, ICBC has promoted the people money defense line bottom line management system, abiding by the rules of active penetration, intellectual control, and overall management path. All kinds of risks are under control. Strategic risk, credit risk, market risk, counter risk, operational risk, liquidity risk, bank book risk, as well as other risks, has been controlled well. We also strengthened new kinds of risk control. The sixth, green finance and ESG image has hit a new level. ICBC has adhered to the concept of environment is invaluable assets. We have actively implemented the low carbon development philosophy, integrating economic and social responsibility as one.
ICBC has launched green financial product and services innovation, and has effectively allocated resources into ESG resources. To improve ESG information disclosure. At the end of June, ICBC's green industry loan balance has reached CNY 2.15 trillion, leading the peers. Total amount of offshore green bond issuance has reached CNY 9.83 billion, and has underwriting CNY 21.7 billion. We have underwritten the carbon neutral bonds, the first one, as well as the first national green development fund. We have communicated with a lot of global important investors with ESG topics. The sixth, reform and innovation has nurtured new momentum. ICBC always adheres to exploring new development and innovation. We focus on digital finance, green and SciTech finance, and to deepen innovation and mechanism reform.
We also further reform the rewards and disciplinary mechanisms for the bank, as well as to reform the resource allocation mechanism, and to realize a light capital development strategy. We focus on clients' balance sheet and to coordinate and innovate the whole value chain. The monthly active users and whole fund scale has been improved. We'd like to innovate to take FPA as one of our management handles of clients. We'd like to channel our operation reform. The online transaction amount has reaching CNY 363 trillion, occupying 98.8%. We also deepened the research system reform, so as to contribute more ICBC wisdom. The seventh, new look for talent-oriented development. We use the better allocation of human resources and compensation mechanism to elevate education and training programs for our talent team building.
We adheres to fully implementation of rigorous corporate governance to innovate the cultivation, selection, evaluation, and reward system for our talent. We have laid a solid foundation for the future development of our bank, and we will, based on the new development phase, implement new development concepts, serve new development paradigm, so as to realize and fulfill high quality development for ICBC, and to create a better stage for the global investors to make long-term investment, safe investment, green investment.
We now come to the Q&A session to give more opportunities to more analysts. I ask each analyst to ask only one question and state your institution. First question from telephone line. Zhou Ran from Morgan Stanley.
Thank you for this opportunity for first question. We pay a lot of attention to wealth management, which has become a arena for competition for commercial banks. With the continued opening up for the financial market in China, we see more foreign capitals entering Chinese market. ICBC, what kinds of measures will it take to maintain a competitive edge in this new round of fierce competition?
From Mr. Liao Lin. Thank you for this forward-looking question. I'll ask Mr. Song Jianhua to answer this question.
Thank you for your question. I expected that someone will ask about wealth management, but I didn't expect this to be the first question.
It means that we all pay a lot of attention to this area for commercial banks. Thank you again for your question. The residents have increased their wealth. The government also proposed that in the high quality growth, we will enhance the common prosperity. Under such a background, wealth management has become a question that all commercial banks must answer. This business is just not about retail business. It also has something to do with the corporate banking business and wealth management business and investment banking business. Of course, it poses a lot of influences on the wealth management for the bank. For ICBC, we have a strong competitive edge, at least from two aspects. First, at the customer side. ICBC is the largest wealth management bank in China. We are managing CNY 1.66 trillion personal financial asset.
It is something entrusted by our customers to the bank. The figure is CNY 16.6 trillion. That's the scale we manage for our customers. From another perspective, we rely on wealth management, custodian, pension, and investment banking, all these kinds of sectors. We also coordinate with funds, insurance, wealth management. We have a strong ability to invest and to do research to better allocate in whole market, and provide this whole system across the whole business chain to provide diversified and unified professional services to our customers. You asked about the special features of ICBC and our measures. We have the following. First, full customer service. ICBC emphasize that wealth management should be facing all the population to all our customers. Tomorrow, we'll have the ICBC wealth management season. It's the fourth ICBC wealth management season, this wealth management festival from ICBC.
Many of our peers try to emulate this practice of ICBC, and this is also our practice to make the wealth management face all our customers. Second, we have a series of products such as fund insurance and precious metal. We have strength in these regards, especially that we have this ICBC Wealth Management Fund Index. This is an index to help customers screen and choose a fund. Our FOF, we follow the ICBC active mix fund, and it accumulated a revenue rate of more than 100%. It shows our ability to help customers manage their wealth. We also provide for corporate customers to provide family trust and such high-end products. This is the scope of products we could provide. As for the allocation, ICBC has built a smart brain to provide all customers tens of millions of plans for all our customers.
For each customer, we have our own service plan. We also have our channels. Besides the offline banking offices, we also have cloud offices and smartphone calls to provide a pertinent service to customers. These are the four aspects of ICBC's advantages. In the next phase, ICBC's wealth management business, we will follow the trend. First, that is the need and direction for everyone to manage their wealth, not just for the high-end customers, but also for all our customers. We need to fit into such a trend. We have a slogan that with our smart ability, we will help the wealth outreach to all customers. We also take into consideration of all risk appetites of all our customers. We provide it to our high-end customers high risk and high return products. We also meet need for customers to have secure products.
That is to say, we will recommend proper products to proper customers. We can say that when we talk about wealth management, we only refer to the high risk and high return products. We also provide more secure wealth management choices. Third, we will build a wealth management product, providing all kinds of products, and based on the regulatory compliance, we will explore new channels for wealth management to meet need. Four, we will build smart wealth management, and to have a relative insight into the customer needs, and provide more pertinent and customized wealth allocation plan. These are the aspects of my answer. Thank you for your question.
Thank you for the response from Mr. Song. Next question, please.
Thank you for this opportunity. I'm from Liang Securities. I want to ask a question about the strategy.
This year marks the first year for the three-year plan for ICBC. Would you please introduce how we began this plan? In the next two years, what's your main areas to development and targets? We are paying a lot of attention to the number one personal bank strategy. What's your progress and your result?
Thank you for your question. This is Ms. Liao Lin speaking. I would like to take your question. This year is the first year for our three-year strategic plan. We propose the idea, that is to build ICBC into a modern financial institution with global competitiveness. We have four l ayouts. That is to give full play to our advantage and make up for shortfalls and strengthen our foundation. In our advantages, we have long-term experiences, such as settlement finance and institutional finance, et cetera.
Meanwhile, our shortfalls, and in terms of shortfalls and coordination, we have four directions. First, personal banking. Second, Forex business. Third, key regional development. Four, the coordinated development of urban and rural areas. This is the part we would like to make up our shortfalls and make more coordination. To consolidate our foundation, such as we have risk management, risk governance, and to solidify our foundation. We have this linked operation of the government side, bank side, and customer side. This is our strategic target and strategic pathways. This is an important year. To have a good start is quite critical. After achieving the goals for this three-year plan, our total asset might exceed CNY 40 trillion. From the first half of this year, the four long boards were doing pretty well. Institutional finance deposit is good, and we are the first among peers.
Corporate banking deposit and loans. The growth of deposit and loans are both good. Transactional finance, we have about CNY 9 trillion investment, and we are the number one in the sales of bonds. We also have agency businesses, and we show the advantage in all these aspects. As for settlement finance, we have a lot of customers. In the first half, settlement and clearing and cash management, the transaction, it reached CNY 219 trillion. This shows ICBC's competitive advantage. You also asked about number one personal banking strategy. This is our short board. We want to make progress. Mr. Song just introduced our wealth management sector. I would like to say that for this strategy, in the first half, we have achieved good results better than expectation. By the end of June, the personal banking asset reached CNY 16.6 trillion.
This is a historical new high. Deposit divided by AUM, we are doing better than peers. This is a very good interaction between deposit and AUM. This is quite important. This indicator, we maintained the leading position in the banking sector. The personal mobile banking application, we have a lot of active customers. We have mobile bank users by 44 million, and monthly active customers is CNY 0.1 billion. The proportion of the contribution through personal banking business increased by 5.5 percentage points. We noticed that our deposit is quite stable, and we made new breakthrough in terms of credit business for personal customers. We need to thank our technology for that. Mr. Song just introduced that our wealth management have benefited from FinTech.
In the next phase, personal banking business will play a major role in our strategic layout and will give full play to our strengths online and offline. Online, we have more than 0.4 billion customers. Among them, a quarter of them are monthly active. Offline, we have 16,000 banking offices, which we also need to transform. Combine the online and offline channels and with the enable support from FinTech, I believe that in this year we will achieve very good results as the first year for the three-year strategy period.
Thank you for your answer. Third question, please.
Chen Siqing. Thank you very much for this opportunity. I'm very sorry, the signal was pretty bad just now. Thank you for the question again. Congratulations that you have achieved such a good results. According to the market prediction, we are facing with some downward pressure. The policies has reaching a turning point of QE. What is the future credit demands of ICBC as the largest commercial bank? To the next half year, what is our plan to give out our loans? Will it be bigger?
Your question is very accurate. Vice President Xu Shouben will answer your question.
Thank you for your question. From the perspective of ICBC, the credit demands for ICBC is going into a better direction because the economic recovery is pretty good in the first half. All the banks have given out a lot of credit during the first half. Our loan balance has reached CNY 1.26 trillion. Through many measures, including credit assets securitization, we have enlarged the credit given out. We can see that on several sides, including customer side and corporate side, we are strengthening our loan given out. The major direction of our loan credit goes to the major strategic important areas according to the 14th Five-Year Plan of the nation. There is a rapid growth in our loans of all respects. In key areas, the sum of our loan has reached 76.8%, which is higher than expectation.
The result of total loans given out is pretty good for the first half and the next half. The reserve of our bank is adequate, and we can guarantee a robust growth in the next half. Our development strategy will be combining the market change and economic recovery, and it will match the risk appetite of our bank. The growth rate will remain quite the same as the first half year.
Inclusive green tech supply chain will be the major areas of our loan given out. As for allocations, we will combine loans, bonds, and equity to inject capital into the real economy and to satisfy multiple financial services demands of our clients.
Yan Meizhi from UBS. UBS Securities.
I want to ask a question about the NIM. We noticed that the NIM of ICBC is quite stable. Since the second half of last year, we see a drop of NIM. My question is that, looking forward, we noticed that the monetary policy in China have a relaxing trend in the margin. In the future, in the next half of this year, what's your opinion about the monetary policy, the regulators expect the loan interest rate to drop to support your economy. What's your opinion about NIM in the next half of this year?
Mr. Zhang Wenwu.
Thank you for your question. For the first half, our NIM is 3.12%, and compared to the end of last year, it's 2 basic points lower. It's merely because the revenue is lower. On the asset side, we try to reduce the cost of the real economy. As such a background, in the first half, our revenue rate from the asset side dropped. Compared to 2020, it's a 80 basic points drop. We make more efforts in terms of optimization of our liability side and to properly manage the interest rate cost for our deposit. The interest rate cost is merely stable. In the first half, this rate is maintained at 1.61%, but general interest cost of our liabilities, it's a drop by 4 basic points as compared to last year.
About the trend in the future, I think in general, the PBOC is guiding the financing cost to go downward at the liability side, though it is on the decrease. From the asset side, we have this asset structure, and we have a different profit from all kinds of sectors in the asset structure. By capturing market opportunities, our revenue could be maintained at a sound level. In the aspect of choosing the customers, though some of the return dropped, however, we protect, support the market players, and the relevant costs are also lowered. On the liability side, currently speaking, the competition is quite severe. The PBOC also guides that the decrease of the liability cost, so the PBOC is also doing its work at both sides. Our liability costs dropped by 4 basis points.
Across the quarters, our liability cost, we have reversed the trend for our liability cost. In the past, it is on the increase, and now it is quite stable. The structure also shows differences. For personal customers, it's not so resilient. Despite such a background, the management is making all efforts to optimize the structures of our asset and liability to maintain that our NIM is at above average level compared to our peers. We are going to do the work from the following aspects. First, build our customer base, strengthen the GBC coordination to build a good ecology for our customers. Mr. Guan introduced ICBC's advantages. Our institutional business and corporate banking business are our long balls. We give full play to these long balls.
Among our different customers, by better coordination, we enhance the woven of the network of customers and manage the source of our customers to control our cost for capital. Besides, we enhance wealth management for customers and implement the number one personal banking bank. The core is to provide better service to our customers, so customers are more willing to maintain, leave their capital with ICBC so as to achieve our goal of maintaining a good cost for liabilities, and we could full play to our advantages of channels and our FinTech. The channels for ICBC. We have both a very strong online and offline channels. I can say the strongest in the market. Our domestic and international channels are also the number one among peers. Our international network is quite wide.
For all our customers, both at home and abroad, our ability to provide services is the strongest. In general, I think the management of ICBC could give full use of our ability to manage our asset, and use our ability to serve customers, and give full play to our advantages in FinTech and in channels to provide better service to customers, and control the cost, and control our NIM at a sound level.
Thank you for your question. Next question from China Securities
Thank you for the opportunity. I want to ask about asset quality. In the first half, what's the highlight and stress point for asset quality, and what's the trend?
Thank you for your question. This is Ms. Liao Lin speaking. The background is that we have three major points deciding asset quality. First, GDP trend. Second, the bank's asset structure. Third, enterprise risk management ability.
These are the three factors deciding the asset quality of a bank. In the first half, ICBC's asset quality, as introduced by Guan Xueqing. Our NPL ratio is 1.54%, down by 4 basic points. The gap, scissor gap. It's showing very good momentum. Overdue loans and overdue rate both decreased, and loans falling into the category of attention also dropped. From these indicators, we could see that in the first half, our asset quality is quite sound, especially for the real estate sector, which attracts a lot of attention. In general, the NPL rate and NPL balance is quite stable. Rising slightly, but this rise is completely under control. Another factor is the moratorium of the principals of interest is also under control. ICBC have monthly supervision, and we have different policies for different categories of customers.
For customers with difficulties and with no hope, we have proper management and add them into the management of NPL. There's another aspect that is collection and disposal. In the first half, we enhanced our disposal of bad assets. With various measures, we improved the quality for disposal and collection. We also use our resources to write off. The proportion for collection and write off is 1 compared to 2, and for corporate loans, we have a higher proportion. More than 80% of bad loans are corporate loans. Bad loans for personal customer loans is less than 20%. Bad loans are mainly in the sectors of manufacturing, retail and wholesale, and leasing and commercial service. While abroad, our asset quality is generally good. Despite the pandemic, the NPL ratio is quite good at about 0.62%.
The overseas assets make a contribution for the total asset quality of the Bank. You also asked about the trajectory for asset quality in this year. As I mentioned, I think there's three factors contributed to the asset quality, GDP, structure and risk management. From these factors, after the asset structure, after years of adjustment, it is going towards our expected direction, and the structure is relatively sound. Our risk management ability. We have enterprise risk management. In this whole system, we manage operational risks, and we manage all these assets at the entry side and at the major points and also at the exit points. We also stick to the three lines of defense, and we also manage our bottom lines well. Especially in terms of management of asset quality, we have thresholds and Seven-color Pools.
All our branches have learned such a methodology. For our key branches, we have this major battle against bad assets. For each year, we will choose several tier 1 and tier 2 branches to enhance their battle against the bad assets. For major and key customers, for example, customers with the largest amount of finance with ICBC, we make a key management. Meanwhile, for real estate sector, we strengthen our management. For credit card, strengthen our management and optimize the structure. With the comprehensive measures, we have the confidence that we will maintain a stable asset quality for the next half of this year. Though we have recurrence of the pandemic, but the economy is recovering. We expect the pandemic only have limited and lessened impact on our asset quality. Risk management will go back to normal.
ICBC's asset quality will maintain a good momentum to be stable and picking up for the better. We have confidence in that. Thank you.
Thank you for your answer. The sixth question. The sixth question is from CICC, Geng Shuai .
Thank you for this opportunity. I'm from CICC. My question is about the supplement of capital. We noticed that ICBC's capital adequacy ratio is pretty solid, actually PB is still quite low. It would be hard to supplement the CET1 capital through external funds. With the implementation of future TLAC, capital requirements bottom line will be increasingly higher. In the next three to five years, what's your plan to supplement the capital, and how would you balance the ROE and capital supplement?
This is a good question. We have a big plan for credit, and it will influence the ROE. Board Secretary Guan Xueqing will answer your question. Mr. Guan Xueqing.
You can see the capital adequacy ratio of ICBC is 17.1%.
We are supporting the development of real economy. The RWA growth rate should be reasonable. For the first half, the RWA growth ratio is 4.7%, but the loan growth rate is over 7%, which means we have maintained a good control on the RWA. The second, we have relied on the internal capital and profit reserve to supplement our capital, which is a quite strong measure. Last year, we have issued a CNY 70 billion perpetual AT1 bond, as well as CNY 30 billion T2 bonds, in total CNY 100 billion. Our capital adequacy ratio has raised pretty good. Our net asset value has reached CNY 3 trillion. You asked about the TLAC implementation. There will be a higher requirement. We have several considerations. First, we will satisfy the demands of real economy development. We will enhance the ability to supplement the capital through internal ways.
To better use external capital instruments to add our capital. We need to follow a capital-intensive development path. In the first half, we focused on a thing that our CET1 capital ratio is going down a little bit, but other tiers of capital are going up. We have a better structure of capital, which can balance the downwards pressure of ROE. How we integrate the ROE and capital adequacy ratio? You mentioned that ICBC's PB is pretty low, which is related to the economic structure of the whole country. If the strategy of the market of China will transform from indirect financing to direct financing. It will ease the pressure of supplementing the capital, and we will promote the transformation to a light capital development path. We'll better balance the ROE and capital supplement.
When you can see, the ROE of our bank was 11.9%, up by 20%, which is a good result comparing to global peers. As for the international TLAC requirement to be implemented in the future, we have done some policies and internal arrangements to prepare for it. We will implement relative measures so as to satisfy the TLAC regulatory requirements to enhance our ability to cope with risks in the future.
Thank you for your answer.
Now the seventh question from online. Peng Mo from CITIC Securities.
Thanks to the management for the opportunity. I'm analyst Peng Mo from CITIC Securities. My question is about digitalized transformation. Since last year, the financial regulation has been strengthened, especially on the management of disorder expansion of assets, which has exerted impacts on the internet industry. However, it's an opportunity for the banks. Facing this new opportunity, what kind of changes will ICBC have in terms of digitalized transformation? What kind of achievements has ICBC made? Could you please give us some outlook? Thank you.
President Liao Lin is speaking. Your question is very good, whether an elephant can dance. I will invite Vice President, Mr. Zhang Wenwu to answer your question.
Thank you for your question.
Recently, the regulators has issued a series of measures targeted at standardizing internet financing industry, which is conducive for long-term sustained development of China's internet finance and the high quality development of financial industry and the whole economy. I would like to make a brief introduction. In the first half of the year, ICBC has implemented the 14th Five-Year Plan, centering on establishing an IT strong bank and establish a digital finance. I would like to give you a brief introduction. In terms of establishing an agile bank and give full play to the vitality of IT. On one hand, we have strengthened the cooperation with domestic and overseas partners to study and introduce latest IT, including the infrastructure of FinTech, application of 5G and AI. We have timely introduced the latest technology into our business operation.
On the other hand, internally, we have accelerated incorporation and integration of business in the IT. We have strengthened cooperation among the staff. For some new staff, we have trained their FinTech capacity. Meanwhile, we have chose some core IT areas and introduced high-tech talents to solve bottleneck problems. In terms of establishing an intelligent bank, we have give full place to ICBC's advantages in terms of online and offline channels. ICBC is the first to launch cloud bank among peers and to provide financial services in all channels. For instance, the mobile bank. We have continuously optimized its function. By the end of first year, our personal mobile bank clients has reached CNY 443 million. Corporate internet bank clients growth rate exceeded 23%, and corporate bank growth rate exceeded 50%.
ICBC has give full play to its online and offline channels in combined and incorporated our outlets with online services. Introduced some new medium channels to facilitate the clients and to provide one-stop and comprehensive services for clients at all time. As President Liao has introduced, over 99% of business are operated online. Our cloud outlets have covered has reached 160,000, and we have opened cloud studios for our client relationship managers. Besides, we have established over 10 scenarios to substitute traditional businesses. ICBC has also give full play to its domestic and overseas network advantages, which has topped our peers. Besides, ICBC has developed NOVA and FOVA systems independently. For both corporate and individual clients, we have provided global and multi-currency global settlement system, which has increased our service capacity for clients. Domestically, we have improved our operation rate efficiency.
We have a lot of overseas and domestic branches and institutions. We have tried our best to concentrate our operation to two major regions, to accelerate and maintain business consistency during cases such as coronavirus. We have also used the satellites to monitor the intelligent ends, and used the quantum computer technology to accelerate the application of scenarios. Third, in terms of establishing an eco-friendly bank, we have empowered the establishment of an eco-friendly bank with our IT. For example, through API and cloud ICBC, we have strengthened the cooperation among different areas. We have increased about 1,000 scenarios compared with the beginning of the year. The activity of our clients has increased by four times. We have also provided a comprehensive platform such as e-Social Security service to facilitate the public and the government departments in terms of Medicare.
Last year, ICBC has successfully bidded for provided cloud services for medical instruments on projects under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. We have provided custody of capital for over 230,000 schools. Our pace is accelerated and very fast. We have also established a digital countryside platform to provide government affair management finance services for countryside, which has covered 181 countryside. We have provided services for over 50 agriculture parks. In terms of establishing a digitalized bank, we have promoted digitalized industrialization. We actively participated in this regard, established digital elements market. We cooperated with 26 provinces and municipalities. To empower SMEs with these digital elements based on 50 categories of digital information. We provided loans for anti-coronavirus, et cetera. Our inclusive finance loan balance has exceeded CNY 1 trillion for the first half of the year. The post loan management also relies on our systems and IT.
The NPL ratio has decreased by 4 bp for the first half of the year, which also shows our advantage of IT in management of asset quality. We developed a data middle desk, which is strongest among peers, and achieved GBC whole chain client relationship identification and to facilitate internal circle of clients' funds
As to improve our service capacity for clients. In terms of establishing a safe bank, ICBC relies on itself to the IT R&D to ensure the high quality of IT systems. Currently, the use rate has maintained over 99.99%. Based on our core businesses, we will serve over 49 countries and regions, 180,000 domestic institutions, and over 400 overseas institutions, and to provide facilitate and safe financial services for our clients. The transaction peak has reached CNY 870 million. We aim to provide more stable and safer services.
For answer your questions from emails. We received one questions. The question from Mr. Ying. I'm ICBC shareholder from A-share. First, the PE of Bank of America is 12.3x, PB, 1.23x, but ICBC PE is 4.81x, PB 0.63x. BOA's income and net profits are lower than ICBC's, but capitalization is higher than ICBC's is.
What are the measures do you take to improve investors' confidence by improving PE and PB? Second, what are your measures to improve ICBC's future compound growth by 2% over 10%? My third, my suggestion is that you re-poll ICBC's shares when PB falls below 1x.
Board Secretary Mr. Guan will answer your question.
Thank you for your question. This is a very good question, and we are also considering these questions, and we are analyzing the capital market, especially for the different valuation of American and Chinese banking industries. The PE and PB of ICBC outperform other peers. We rank first in this regard. However, our PB compared with BOA, we still have a gap. We also analyze the difference from the end of 2020 to 2022.
So far, Dow Jones Index increased by 9%, but the A-share of ICBC only improved by 4%, so the market environment is quite different. Second, I also mentioned that ICBC China's financial institutions are different from some countries. The indirect financing is the main channel, RWA. ICBC's doubles that of this bank. We have CNY 3 trillion, but BOA only CNY 1 trillion. The financial structure and the stage of development of the industries are quite different. Thirdly, China's A-share also have different investment style. In China, the capital market is still the initial phase for the high-quality development. We are still cultivating our investors. Against such background, market style is preferring the growth rate for the long-term value growth, value rate of the shares. The valuation shows a low trend.
Our dividend payout ratio is quite high for ICBC, and the dividend payout ratio also ranked first among all listed companies for long-term and safe investors, for those value investment investors. ICBC's shares is a quite good target. Against that background of the market environment, PB of ICBC is undervalued by the market. We are also expecting that more investors, when they select shares, they can follow the high quality development of the Chinese economy and the value of ICBC's shares and further improve their recognition for ICBC shares' values. Tell good story of the Chinese economy and Chinese banking industry, and ICBC's own story, so that investors, among the complex information of the capital market, they can understand more of ICBC's investment values.
Based on the status quo, I think our IR team can further improve their IR management capabilities so that more investors can share ICBC's information in the market. I also believe through the power of market, ICBC has full confidence to improve the value of PB. For the investors with high vision, they will share the rebound of ICBC's PB, and they will share the market value. Secondly, for compound growth, the net profit of ICBC since listing shows great trajectory, and ROE also shows positive growth. 11.9% is the result of the first half of the year, up by 20 bp compared with the last year. The profit volume is very high of ICBC, so the increased volume cannot be similar to that of the volume. In the first half of the year, we compared with some international large banks. PPOP increased quite low.
Operating income also shows the same trajectory. The recovery of provision is the main reason of the increase. ICBC adheres to the long-term increase. We will go through the cyclical fluctuations. We will increase our profits to improve our safety margin so that the growth of our profits will grow sustainably. The third question, I believe the power of the market will promote ICBC's PB to a higher level, and the market will improve investors' confidence. Thank you.
Next, we will answer questions raised through online platform. Yu Hua from Haoge, Shanghai. Internationally, its attention to ESG has increased. For ICBC, as an internationally concerned bank, how will it fulfill ESG responsibility? How do you regard the relationship between ESG and a capital-based bank?
In terms of fulfilling ESG responsibility, we sticked to disclosure of ESG. For years, we have released the ESG report and social responsibility report. In the half year, we have also released green finance report. Besides, ICBC has established a sustained ESG financial system. From BOD to senior management, both paid a lot of attention to ESG financial development. The Board of Directors has reviewed relevant proposals on ESG, and we have established CSR and Consumer Rights Protection Committee under BOD to perform ESG-related responsibilities. Besides, under senior management, we have established relevant committee to perform ESG responsibilities and functions.
Will convey ESG and green finance to the whole group. We have paid a lot of attention to SDGs of United Nations, including biodiversity, fairness, education, society finance, marine, environmental protection, et cetera. We have arranged financial services in all regards and aspects. In terms of risk management and product strategies, we have laid relevant arrangements. From this point of view, we believe ICBC will become a sustainable green finance provider and promote green development of China. During our overseas development, we have required our overseas institutions to do business in a green way in terms of environmental protection of rights and interests of stakeholders, and ensure governance efficiency. We require our overseas branches institutions to be an excellent global citizen and meet the expectation of local government and societies.
ESG will be an important area of ICBC. We will deepen information disclosure in this regard and strengthen internal measuring product and management systems in this regard, as well as risk management system. According to 30-60 carbon peak and carbon-neutral targets committed by the Chinese government, we will also control our own carbon emission and give full play to our financial service advantages to facilitate industries and enterprises during low-carbon transformation and control high-carbon consumption and emission industries, and effectively control financing risks among our loan business and financing services. In the future, green investors and sustainable investors, for these investors, we will give sound returns.
The number of people online have exceeded 3,000. We will have another question. Xie Weiwei with Haitong Securities.
How is ICBC implementing the series of macro adjustment policies? For example, the concentration in three red line regulation requirements of PBOC. What are the management measures?
Vice President, Mr. Xu Shouben will answer your question.
Thank you for your question. On August 2020, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, as well as PBOC, has convened a seminar which invited 12 real estate enterprises. From long term, we believe the three red lines is conducive for the development of overall real estate enterprises. For some enterprises with a relatively large amount of financing and a relatively high liability ratio, it may face capital pressure in the short term, and it needs some time of transition adjustment. On one hand, we will actively implement the policies of the state and rationally control the financing amount for commercial real estate sector and implement whole caliber financing and investment limit management for commercial real estate.
Before the three red lines policy, we have already adopted credit control measures to control the financing amount. We believe the overall risks are under control. Two, w e have strengthened the categorized management of products and regions. Our new financing supports general commercial housing, residential housings. We strictly controlled the financing for commercial real estate development. Three, w e have chose the real estate groups with relatively strong strength, sound financial situation, and reasonable rational liability level. Four, w e have implemented the closed loop management for real estate loans and effectively controlled the key risk links. Our development loans project mainly concentrated in the first and second tier cities. Most of the enterprises and projects has a relatively high pledge ratio. In terms of concentration ratio, we have implemented macroeconomic and adjustment policies, strictly implemented prudential macro management requirements, and controlled the proportion of real estate loans.
We have rationally controlled the total amount, increment, and proportion of commercial real estate development loans to maintain the overall stability of asset quality. By the end of June, the concentration ratio of ICBC has already reached regulators' requirements, and there is no mature pressure.
Many more questions are coming in. May we have another question?
I'm Wang Jinghan with Guosen Securities. My question concerns inclusive finance. It is the priority at present. You have a strategy in inclusive finance. How is the situation? For example, how is the interest rate? Is there any change this year? What's your outlook in the future? As COVID-19 is contained, in inclusive finance strategy, will you make some changes? For example, previously, interest rate was low previously. Will you increase such low interest rates? Thank you.
Vice President Xu Shouben will answer this question.
Thank you for your question. Inclusive finance is promoted by the national strategy, and we have high requirements in this regard for commercial banks. It is also the choice in regard of our own development and strategies.
Mr. Guan also mentioned that in the first half of the year, the balance exceeded CNY 1 trillion. The growth is over 40%. The development of inclusive finance business, the volume, the structure, all the indicators are good. The interest rate, we believe the comprehensive cost has reduced compared with the previous situation, because when we do inclusive finance now, it is a very important strategy for ICBC. We are welcoming new technological innovation. We have digital inclusive finance. We have new practice for onboarding of customers, for risk management, operations, refined management, the risk costs, operation costs, and the national macro regulatory supports for the inclusive finance development. We still have large space, and we can also keep the sustainability in the commercial sense. Thank you.
May we have another question?
Thank you, Mr. Liao. We will have the last question. Jin Lanfeng from China Southern Funds.
Thank you for-
Thank you, senior management, for the opportunity. My question is about fee and commission-based income business. People concerned a lot about fee and commission-based business. Its composition is very complex. Except for fee and commission base for wealth management products, the majority comes from investment income. I would like to ask, based on the structure of fee and commission-based income, what do you think is the nature of it? How to create the capacity to create and increase fee and commission-based income from the fundamental?
President Liao Lin is speaking. I would like to invite General Manager Mr. Liu Yagan of Finance and Accounting Department to answer your question.
Mr. Liu is speaking. Thank you for your question. I think it's an important base for your valuation. Fee and commission-based income is a traditional name in China. In international market, we usually call it as non-interest income.
It includes transaction income, as well as our traditional fee and commission-based income. For ICBC, fee and commission-based totaled about CNY 160 billion for the past three years. The difference between interest income and non-interest income is that the interest income mainly from financing services, and non-interest income is related with other businesses. In the first half of the year, ICBC has achieved good results in terms of non-interest income, which increased by 9.3%. Fee and commission-based income has maintained a positive increase, the transaction income is the main contribution. The regulation policies of the state is changing fast. For banks, we have to sacrifice part of our profits to the real economy development. With the adjustment of the policies, some of our account, crude oil account, precious metals business, have been suspended.
For the banking industry in China, the transaction income is relatively low so far, and it has great opportunity. ICBC has actually done a relatively better work among the big four Chinese banks. It only accounts for 3% - 4%. For JP Morgan, its proportion is about 30%, and for Citibank, it has reached 30%. ICBC is the bank with the largest amount of RMB around the globe. We have the largest amount of RMB loans and RMB bonds and RMB equity investment. If the transaction costs can increase to 20%, the income structure will change by a large extent. These are all capital efficient businesses, and if we can increase this proportion, our valuation will increase by a large extent. We applied amortization accounting in our banking book. For JP Morgan, 80% of its business are calculated by market value.
ICBC is very prudent and applied AC in our accounting methods. If we can adjust this, perhaps in the future, if we apply this, we can also increase our income by a large extent. We are actually making use of our wisdom to serve the clients. ICBC is a market maker in terms of RMB business. GBC.
Thank you, all investors for your questions, and thank the senior management for your answers. Due to time limit, that's the end of today's meeting, and thank you for your participation. If you have any more questions, our investor relationship management team will contact you after the meeting and answer your questions. We welcome you for further communication. Thank you again for your concern and care of ICBC. We will strive our best to create value for all investors and return sustained profits for all of investors. Happy weekend.