SB Corp dividends aggregate to P1.37B

MANILA, Philippines - The Small Business Corp. (SB Corp) has remitted to the National Government a total of P1.37 billion over a 20-year period.

This amount is equivalent to more than four times the initial P300-million investments made by the government to the corporation through the then Guarantee Fund for SMEs (GFSME), which was merged with SB Corp. in 2001 and excludes the over P360 million dividend of the then GFSME to its mother agency.

SB Corp. released P887.8 million in direct payments through taxes, guarantee fees and dividends, and P483-million indirect payments through charges in borrowings and withholding taxes on placements.

This forms part of SB Corp.’s contribution to the government’s coffers in support to its revenue generation efforts and fiscal consolidation program.

For 2011, SB Corp. remitted a total of P234.8 million in taxes and fees. This includes foreign currency exchange (forex) risk cover fee of P76.1 million, guarantee fees amounting to P18.9 million, withholding taxes on placements at P21.4million and taxes and licenses amounting to P11.7 million.

Though at present SB Corp. is still within the five-year moratorium on dividends declaration as provided by Republic Act (RA) 9501, it has already declared a total of P511 million as of 2007. It will resume its dividends declaration to the National Government and its other stockholders in 2013 in compliance with the law

SB Corp. continues to be the country’s third biggest source of financing to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with loan releases reaching up to P41 billion, supporting more than 10,000 enterprises, 85,000 microenterprises through 150 partner financial institutions.