Maybank in talks with possible partners

MANILA, Philippines - Maybank Philippines Inc. yesterday said it is eyeing potential acquisitions or mergers to further scale up its operations in the country.

“We’ve been talking to parties… there’s a real seriousness in the group’s intention to look for opportunities to scale up via acquisitions or mergers,” Maybank Philippines President Herminio Famatigan Jr. told reporters.

Famatigan said the bank has been holding “exploratory talks” with various parties in line with Maybank’s plan to expand its operations in the Philippines.

“We have said (in the past) that the Philippines is an important market for the group and having said that, we are looking for ways to scale up our business,” Famatigan said.

“We’ve grown organically, tremendously since we started in 1997 but we’re on the lookout for opportunities to scale up inorganically as well,” he said.

This came following a new law signed by President Aquino in July that allowed the entry of more foreign banks in the country.

RA 10641 now allows foreign banks to acquire up to 100 percent of a local lender or to fully own a new banking subsidiary, amending a previous provision that only permits foreign banks to own up to 60 percent of any Philippine bank’s voting stock. 

Maybank Philippines will be looking for an institution that will enhance its current operations, Famatigan said.

“If we’re going to buy a bank, it’s going to be a bank that complements what we do… we plan to go into consumer business quite aggressively. We’ve done a very good job in the last several years but we’d like to cover more ground,” Famatigan said.

He added the bank’s consumer business grew by 41 percent in the first half of the year versus the same period in 2013.

“There’s no specific bank (to acquire) in mind. We’re now 80 branches and if we’re going to buy a bank, we’d like it to have a direct impact in terms of our market coverage,” Famatigan said.

Maybank Philippines has 79 branches in the country, 30 of which are in Metro Manila and the rest located in key cities in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The bank also has 93 offsite and on-site automated teller machines across the country.

The bank is part of the Maybank Group, a leading financial services group in Malaysia. Maybank has presence in 20 countries, including all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and five International Financial Centers.