The respective Boards of Directors of Bank of the Philippine Islands, Robinsons Bank Corporation, Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc., and JG Summit Capital Services Corporation, at each of their respective meetings last Friday, approved the execution of an agreement for the merger of BPI and RBC, with BPI emerging as the surviving entity.
Upon the effectivity of the merger after receipt of all necessary corporate and regulatory approvals including the approvals of the Philippine Competition Commission, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, the RBC Shareholders will collectively hold approximately 6 percent of the resulting outstanding capital stock of BPI.
BPI President and CEO, Jose Teodoro Limcaoco, said this merger “exemplifies BPI’s strategic effort to expand its client base, accelerate growth, and ultimately increase shareholder value through partnerships with the Gokongwei Group.”
“We plan to effect a smooth transition and integration of RBC and its customers into BPI. Together, we aim to maintain quality banking services and offer additional best-in-class and innovative products to our expanded client base. We are also keen on strengthening our ties with the Gokongwei Group even more through various collaboration opportunities across the Gokongwei Group’s vast ecosystem.,” Limcaoco said.
Elfren Antonio Sarte, RBank President and CEO, said both parties are excited for the possibilities that this merger will unlock “given the unique position we are in that will allow us to leverage on the ecosystems of two of the largest conglomerates in the country.”
“We are confident that combining RBank’s product innovations and its success in the rapidly growing niche markets with BPI’s scale of operations and formidable reputation can only benefit our customerswith better and expanded service. We will work closely with BPI in the coming months to ensure proper integration of the two organizations and to ensure that our customers will be able to transition seamlessly,” Sarte said.
The merger, which the parties hope to complete before the end of 2023, will “unlock various synergies across several products and service platforms and expand the customer and deposit base of both banks through the merged entity.”
At the same time, by capitalizing on BPI’s expertise and network, the merger will “lead to enhancement of the overall banking experience of RBC customers.”
RBC’s products and services cater to its corporate, commercial, and retail clients through its 189 branches and branch-lite units (including 14 branches and 14 branch-lite units of its subsidiary, Legazpi Savings Bank), 354 ATMs, and online and mobile banking channels.
As of end-June, 2022, RBC has total assets of P175.9 billion, including net loans and receivables of P102.4 billion, and total liabilities of P156.0 billion, including deposits of P139.0 billion.
Bank of the Philippine Islands delivered strong first half results posting a net income of P20.4 billion up 73.0 percent year-on-year on higher revenues and lower provisions.
Total revenues for the first half of the year increased by 19.8 percent year-on-year to P57.6 billion driven by the growth in net interest income of 16.2 percent to P39.3 billion on the back of 14.4 percent loan growth and a 15-basis point expansionin net interest margin to 3.46 percent.
Non-interest income was also up 28.4 percent to P18.3 billion as fee income increased 42.2 percent year-on-year, slightly tempered by notably lower securities trading gains which came off a high base last year.
The bank recognized provisions of P5.0 billion for the first half of the year, a 23.1 percent reduction from the P6.5 billion booked over the same period last year. NPL ratio further improved to 1.99 percent and NPL coverage ratio stood at a comfortable 170.7 percent.
Total loans as of June 30, 2022 was P1.6 trillion, a 14.4 percent growth year-on-year, due to higher loan volumes across the board, led by growth in the corporate and SME, credit card, and auto portfolios of 16.3 percent, 16.5 percent, and 5.9 percent, respectively.
Total deposits grew 18.3 percent year-on-year to P2.0 trillion. The bank’s CASA increased by 12.6 percent with a CASA Ratio of 79.2 percent, while the Loan-to-Deposit Ratio was 78.1 percent.
Both loan and deposit volumes remain above pre-pandemic levels.
Total assets reached P2.5 trillion, up 13.1 percent versus the same period last year. Total equity stood at P304.1 billion, with an indicative Common Equity Tier 1 Ratio of 16.0 percent and a Capital Adequacy Ratio of 16.9 percent, both aboveregulatory requirements.
