Metrobank eyes 18% loan growth in 2014

MANILA, Philippines - Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank) is looking at a loan growth of up to 18 percent and an additional 20 new branches in 2014.

Also in the pipeline is another $500-million Tier 2 debt paper to serve as “a buffer” despite having raised more than enough capital to make the bank Basel-III compliant.

Metrobank vice president and head of investor relations Juan Placido T. Mapa III said the bank was already Basel III compliant as of end-2013.

“We just want to make sure that we have capital for growth,” Mapa said.

The bank has 856 branches and over 2,000 onsite and offsite automated teller machines (ATMs) at the end of 2013. It already opened four branches in the first two months of 2014.

Last year, its consolidated net income of P22.5 billion was 46-percent higher than the P15.4 billion earned the prior year.

Total resources peaked at P1.38 trillion, a 32-percent increase from the previous year’s P1.05 trillion.

Deposits exceeded the P1-trillion mark to close the year at P1.02 trillion for a 38-percent year-on-year increase.

Mapa said the bank would be placing greater emphasis towards the retail lending market. Its corporate accounts, which account for nearly half of its loan portfolio, remain stable.

Likewise, Metrobank continued its aggressive expansion towards the regional market, though strategic alliances with regional banks.

In fact, it has increased its alliances with Japanese banks to serve the needs of Japanese locators in industrial parks and export processing centers.

It inked business alliance agreements with several Japanese financial institutions in support of expansion plans of Japanese SMEs into the Philippines.

Metrobank forged partnerships with the Japan-based banks namely Hyakugo Bank Ltd., Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank Ltd., The 77 Bank, Okazaki Shinkin Bank, Akita Bank, Iyo Bank, Chugoku Bank, and Hyakujushi Bank.

The business alliance between Metrobank and these Japanese banks aims to support the Japanese SME clients in their future operations in the Philippines.

With this partnership, the Japanese enterprises will have access to financing and will enable them to open accounts in the local currency. It will also provide financial advisory services to further guide the Japanese SMEs in their expansion.

Metrobank has a strong Japanese linkage through its Metrobank Tokyo branch as well as a dedicated Japan Desk within its Corporate Banking Group that specializes in handling the needs and addressing the concerns of Japanese businesses operating in the Philippines.  

It forged partnerships with two Japan-based business support organizations namely Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and the Japan Finance Corporate (JFC).