UOB gets more worried over liquidity requirements in global banking scene

It's also scared of the sluggish ASEAN region.

According to CIMB, UOB stands in the middle of their preference list. Its 2Q13 results were not particularly compelling. Pre-provision operating profit was in line.

The headline outperformance came from a spike in associates’ and write-backs from investment securities’ allowances, both of which will fade in the quarters ahead.

Here's more from CIMB:

The positives are its determined attempts to build up other drivers of fee income (wealth management, wholesale banking), which seem to have contributed to a rather impressive series of quarterly fee income growth in recent times.

UOB’s concern over liquidity requirements and focus on ensuring that each regional office can collect enough deposits to fund its own loans suggest that it might be the most resilient the next time funding stress spikes up in the global banking arena.

The negatives for the stock are that the ASEAN region is slowing rather distinctly. UOB’s diversification out of Singapore might not give it the alternative growth engines that it is seeking.