Unitrust being readied for liquidation by PDIC

Unitrust Development Bank (Unitrust) is being readied for liquidation by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp (PDIC), closing the book on the bank that sank in 2002 after the take-over of controversial Japanese investor, Genta Ogami.

PDIC president Ricardo Tan said over the weekend that Unitrust is about to be tabled for liquidation pending the final approval of the PDIC board of directors.

Tan said that once approved by the PDIC board, the remaining properties and assets of the defunct bank would be bid out and the proceeds of the sale would be used to pay off the remaining bank depositors with pending claims.

Formerly controlled by Group Management Corp., Unitrust was acquired by a new group of investors (owning 20 percent each), composed of G. Universal Co., Ltd.; Minamoto Saiken Kaishu Co., Ltd.; Atty. Leopoldo J. Valcarcel, Jr.; Pedro Z. Montanez and Francis R. Yuseco, Jr.

The acquisition, however, created panic among Unitrust depositors and the bank declared a bank holiday in 2002 following heavy withdrawals in January of that year.

The acquisition, however, did not push through after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said that the transaction had no prior approval of the Monetary Board.

In the bankrun that followed, the MB placed the bank under the receivership of the PDIC.

A BSP official explained that under banking regulations, the shareholders of Unitrust are given the opportunity to rehabilitate the bank.

According to the official, however, the group claiming to be Unitrust shareholders was unable to show proof of ownership and therefore could not be designated in the rehabilitation of the bank.

The official said that once the PDIC completes the liquidation of Unitrust, the proceeds would be distributed among its depositors who have not been paid.

"The proceeds would be divided proportionally among the depositors with remaining claims," the official said.

PDIC data show that Unitrust had total assets of P700 million and at the time it was closed down, its deposit liabilities was estimated at P284 million and more than 18,000 accounts.

According to PDIC, it has paid P93.24 million of the total insured deposits of P121.05 million of Unitrust Development Bank (UDB), as of 2002, representing 77 percent of the total insured amounts of Unitrust and 93 percent of the total amount of claims filed.