BPI revives regional expansion plan

The Ayala-controlled Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is reviving its expansion plan within the Southeast Asian region after temporarily being placed on the back burner due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis and its merger in 2000 with Far East Bank and Trust Co.

In its letter to the Philippine Stock Exchange, BPI confirmed its "continuing interest to consider an expansion move within the ASEAN region," with Indonesia as a possible "first stop" given its huge consumer market and the value that BPI can bring in the consumer banking business.

"This regional expansion initiative has been identified by the Bank many years ago but plans were somewhat derailed by the 1997 crisis and the Bank’s recent merger with Far East Bank where energies had to be refocused and priorities had to be moved around," BPI said.

BPI, the country’s second largest bank network in terms of total resources, said the completion of the merger and integration process with FEBTC has once again placed the regional move up in its list of projects.

But it clarified that the regional expansion, which has gained approval in principle and support from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, still needs to be reviewed with caution and prudence "given the geo-political issues in the Middle East and the economic uncertainties sweeping the region and the rest of the world."

BPI said it has been scouting different bank investment opportunities in Indonesia, including, among others, PT Bank NISP, a relatively small but well-managed and highly-respected commercial bank.

It added discussions are still "very much on the exploratory stage" with no definite agreements arrived at yet, although there were reports that BPI is eyeing at least a 20-percent stake in the Indonesian bank worth around $20 million.

The Jakarta-based PT Bank NISP ranks among Indonesia’s top banks and was voted the Best Retail Bank in Indonesia and one of "Asia’s Most Admired Companies" for 2001.

The World Bank’s private sector investment arm, the International Finance Corp., has a 15-percent interest in the bank.

BPI, for its part, also ranks among "Asia’s Most Admired Companies" as it topped all Philippine companies in terms of financial soundness in the latest poll commissioned by the Far Eastern Economic Review.