BPI cuts offer period for SEED bond sale

MANILA, Philippines — The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has shortened the offer period of its P5 billion sustainable, environmental and equitable development (SEED) bonds due to strong demand.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday, BPI said the offer period would now close early on Aug. 1, which was originally set to run from July 19 to Aug. 2.

“The bank expresses its gratitude to the investing public’s strong support for the offer,” BPI said.

BPI kicked off the public offering of its 1.5-year fixed-rate bonds, due 2026, on July 19. The bonds will be listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) platform on Aug. 9.

The SEED bonds will be issued at par value, with an interest rate of 6.2 percent per annum, paid quarterly. Proceeds of the offer will be used to finance or refinance new or existing eligible green projects under the BPI’s sustainable funding framework.

Investors can avail of the debt securities with a minimum amount of P500,000 and in additional increments of P100,000.

BPI Capital Corp. and Standard Chartered Bank are joint lead arrangers and selling agents for the bond sale.

The Ayala-led lender earlier said it strives to have sustainability at the core of the bank’s corporate strategies, balancing its growth aspirations with its environmental and social responsibility.

“BPI is keen to use the offer of SEED Bonds as an opportunity to promote projects that contribute to the United Nations sustainable development goals,” the bank had said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission confirmed on July 18 that the SEED bonds of BPI qualify as ASEAN sustainability bonds.

As part of its P100 billion bond program, BPI had also announced the issuance of 1.5-year P5 billion fixed-rate ASEAN sustainable bonds, with an option to upsize. The offer period started on July 18 and will end on Aug. 2.