PT Bank Central Asia Tbk, Indonesia's largest private lender, said net profit for the first nine months of 2026 rose 4.2% to Rp45.2 trillion, from Rp43.4 trillion a year earlier, as loans grew three times as fast as earnings. The bank presented the results in Jakarta on Oct. 27.

The figures matter well beyond one bank. BCA (ticker BBCA) is one of the largest listed companies in a market under heavy pressure after index provider MSCI floated a possible demotion. Indonesian stocks lost 16.7% in October, their worst month since March 2020. The results show a lender still growing its balance sheet briskly, but earning less from each rupiah it lends.

Total loans reached Rp1,063 trillion at the end of September, up 12.6% from a year earlier, according to reports by Kontan and IDX Channel. Third-party deposits rose 8% to Rp1,301 trillion.

Corporate Loans Carry BCA's Growth

Lending to businesses did the work. Productive loans, the bank's term for credit to corporate, commercial and small-business borrowers, climbed 17.2% to Rp831 trillion. Corporate loans alone jumped 20.9% to Rp528.1 trillion. Small and medium enterprise loans rose 15.4% to Rp149.2 trillion, and commercial loans grew 7.8% to Rp154.1 trillion.

Households went the other way. Consumer loans fell 2.2% to Rp218.7 trillion, Kontan reported, dragged down by a 20.6% slump in auto loans to Rp48.7 trillion. Mortgages rose 3.6% to Rp143.7 trillion and personal loans grew 11.5% to Rp26.3 trillion. Sharia financing increased 14.3% to Rp14 trillion.

The bank has been trying to revive household demand with promotions. It launched a fixed-rate mortgage plan called KPR Fixed Terencana, and more than 1,600 businesses took part in its BCA Expo 2026 and BCA UMKM Fest 2026 events, according to the IQPlus report. BCA also said cardholders of its Kartu Kredit Indonesia can now pay through QRIS, the national QR code standard, inside its myBCA app.

Deputy President Director John Kosasih tied the business lending to seasonal demand, Kontan reported. He said companies begin buying inputs and ramping up production four to five months before peak periods such as Christmas, Lunar New Year and Lebaran, which lifted their need for working capital. He put the share of committed credit lines that customers had drawn at roughly 65% to 66%.

President Director Hendra Lembong said the bank would keep lending across sectors to support the economy while keeping an eye on prudence and liquidity, according to Fortune Indonesia and the IQPlus report carried by BCA Sekuritas.

Loans classed as sustainable financing reached Rp280.3 trillion, up 16.3% and equal to 26.4% of the portfolio.

BCA Margins Lag the Loan Book

The gap between loan growth and profit growth shows up in the income statement. Net interest income, the bank's main revenue line, rose just 1.2% to Rp64.9 trillion, Kontan reported. Operating income grew 2.9% to Rp85.3 trillion.

BCA did not give a figure for its net interest margin in the reports. Director Vera Eve Lim told reporters that, with strong credit growth, the margin should stay in a band close to its third-quarter level, according to Investortrust.

Funding remained cheap by Indonesian standards. Current and savings account balances, the lowest-cost deposits, rose 10.4% to Rp1,103 trillion, making up about 85% of total deposits, according to the reported figures. Deposits grew more slowly than loans, though: 8% against 12.6%.

Lim said Bank Indonesia's 2 percentage point easing of the reserve requirement would help BCA, giving it liquidity relief of roughly 1%, Investortrust reported.

Asset quality held steady. The nonperforming loan ratio stood at 1.8% at the end of September, at the bottom of the bank's target range of 1.8% to 2%, according to Investortrust. Loans at risk, a wider measure that includes restructured credit, were 4.6%.

Higher Loan Target for 2026

The strong lending run led management to raise its guidance. BCA now expects loans to grow 10% to 12% this year, up from 8% to 10%. Lim said the original plan had been 8% to 10% but that the bank took account of how lending developed into the third quarter, according to Investortrust. The bank has not yet revised the formal business plan it files with regulators, Investortrust reported.

The next test is whether that lending can lift net interest income, which grew barely a tenth as fast as loans through September, when BCA reports full-year 2026 results.