BPI Family seeks growth in VisMin

MANILA, Philippines - BPI Family Bank, the thrift unit of Ayala-owned Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), is looking at strengthening its growth in Visayas and Mindanao, a top bank official said.

Jose Teodoro Limcaoco, BPI Family president and chief executive officer, told The STAR that while most of their branches are located in Luzon, particularly in Metro Manila, they would like to intensify their operations in other growth areas.

Half of the 140 branches, Limcaoco noted, are strategically situated in different parts of the metropolis. But they would also like to put more in nearby Luzon provinces and key cities in Visayas and Mindanao.

In line with this, he said they would be putting up more business centers and business desks which, unlike branches, offer a more person-to-person approach to clients.

Basically, he said their business centers  worked hand-in-hand with their business desks which normally act more like bank agents.

So far, BPI Family has business centers in Cebu, Naga, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Zamboanga and Gen. Santos City. It also employs 10-12 business desks.

Tapping unbanked Filipinos in the provinces, Limcaoco said, is consistent with BPI Family’s thrust to serve as many customers as possible.

He even noted that the level of non-performing loans (NPLs) in these areas are low.

Operating as a savings bank, BPI Family caters to small micro-customers or those with P15 million assets and below. Its parent firm, BPI, handles the group’s multinational, corporate and medium-sized clients.

While BPI Family has already been allowed  to put up five to 10 new branches, Limcaoco said they would rather be more prudent in setting up new branches due to stiff competition in the banking industry.

The BPI Family executive admitted that increasing competition among medium-sized banks, such as PSBank, EastWest Bank, RCBC and Unionbank which have been doing well lately, is posing a great challenge.

“BPI Family’s strength is our distribution network and we have the lowest rates, cheaper than anyone else in the industry,” he said.

Despite major challenges, Limcaoco said he is optimistic they would end the year with a 12 to 14 percent growth in earnings.