Export Bank seeks strategic partners

The Export and Import Bank, owned by Philexport and the Lippo Group of Hong Kong, is looking for strategic partners, both foreign and local, to further boost its trade finance operations in the country.

"We are exploring the possibility of establishing tie-ups or strategic alliances with both local or foreign banks," Export Bank vice president for corporate planning Rolando Valenzuela said in an interview with The STAR.

Valenzuela said the bank is also planning to acquire a commercial bank within this year.

"We are now exploring talks with a local commercial bank," he said, saying the acquisition will help the bank expand its operations.

Aside from this, he said Export Bank is open to the possibility of diversifying its capital base through issuance of new preferred shares and/or some form of capital or subordinate notes. But, he said these plans would take time.

"We want to ensure to maintain our stability and liquidity to withstand any pressures that might be brought up by the crisis," he said.

He said their clients, mostly exporters and importers, are normally the ones affected by any financial crisis.

"This is why we want to provide the best quality of service to our clients," he said.

Aside from accepting deposits from these clients, he said they also provide financial advice especially during times of crisis and difficulty.

"We are making available some hedging instruments to protect them from unnecessary fluctuations," he said.

In line with this, he said they are modernizing their trade finance system and will soon be able to offer electronic banking or banking through the Internet.

He said they expect to develop more alternative delivery channels such as kiosk and off-site or automated teller machine transactions.

The bank, he said, is also planing to handle municipal credit finance for local government units (LGUs) as bond flotation advisor.

As of April this year, Export Bank had 22 branches and a capital base of P2.5 billion. Its resources stood at P9 billion.

Philexport owns about 60 percent of the bank while Lippo Group is accounted for the remaining 40-percent share.