PLDT taps HSBC for P2 billion social loan facility

MANILA, Philippines — Telco giant PLDT Inc. is going big on sustainable financing this year, this time landing a P2-billion loan from HSBC Philippines to bankroll its fiber expansion in underserved areas.

PLDT yesterday said it has acquired a P2 billion social loan facility from HSBC that would be used to fund its network expansion in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDAs).

In particular, PLDT intends to deploy the loan to install fiber lines in the country’s fourth to sixth class municipalities, especially in GIDAs.

PLDT chief finance officer and chief risk officer Danny Yu said the telco was able to secure the loan given the expected outcome of the project it would finance. Social loan facilities are allocated for projects that seek to make positive impact on communities.

Yu said PLDT wants to maximize these financing opportunities to pursue its national expansion. The telco believes it is essential to put up wired and wireless access in GIDAs to support digital needs in education, health, employment, among others.

“The integration of PLDT’s sustainability agenda in the business is evident even in the way that we fund our projects,” Yu said.

This marks the second time that PLDT turned to HSBC for sustainable financing, as the telco secured P1 billion in green loan facility from the bank earlier this year.

For that borrowing, the commitment was to replace copper lines with fiber cables, which require less energy to run, leading to both capital and carbon savings for PLDT.

Similarly, PLDT obtained a green loan worth P4 billion from Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. in May, the first financing availed by the telco from a domestic creditor. The loan was approved on the condition that the telco would expand its network reach using fiber optics.

As for the social loan from HSBC Philippines, the condition was that PLDT would focus its fiber rollout in underserved markets of the country. These markets refer to the 729 municipalities that are classified as fourth to sixth class by the Philippine Statistics Authority as of June.