Bank of Commerce Successfully Raises P6.57 Billion from its Second Tranche Peso Bond Offering

With the successful completion of its previously announced public offering of Peso bonds (Series B Bonds), San Miguel Corporation affiliate Bank of Commerce (BankCom) raised P6.57 billion by the end of the offer period on May 9, 2024.

Institutional and retail investors demonstrated high demand, as shown by the offer being oversubscribed by 1.3 times. The 1.5-year tenor and fixed interest rate of 6.5635% annually are features of the Series B Bonds.

The second tranche of BankCom's P20 billion bond program is represented by Series B bonds. On May 16, 2024, the Series B bonds are scheduled to be issued and listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx).

The offer's proceeds will be used to refinance debt commitments that are coming due.

BankCom celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2023 with a P2.8 billion record-breaking net income. This was the largest growth rate reported by a listed Philippine bank for the year, up 56% from the P1.8 billion reported the year before.
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Return on Equity at the end of 2023 was 9.52%, up from 7.01% the year before and more than twice the bank's ROE of 4.22% as disclosed in the IPO prospectus.

The bank's main lending operation saw an increase, which supported its record-high profit. Year over year, Net Interest Income increased by P1.61 billion, or 24%. There was growth in every lending category. 
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The bank's earnings from its credit card, trust, and investment banking divisions also contributed to the rise in its service charges, fees, and commissions. 

BankCom appointed ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch (ING) and Philippine Commercial Capital, Inc (PCCI Capital) as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Bookrunners and Selling Agents for the Offer. BankCom also acted as a Selling Agent for the Offer. The Series B Bonds are exempt from registration pursuant to Section 9.1(e) of the Securities Regulation Code, and have not been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

An affiliate of San Miguel Corporation (SMC) since 2008, Bank of Commerce is a publicly-listed universal bank focused on helping its clients, communities and conglomerate partners by delivering the best choice of financial services harnessing the strengths of the SMC Group. Bank of Commerce is identified by its logo bearing the SMC symbols of escudo and cloverleaf, and by the trademark license short name "BankCom" granted by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) in 2020. BankCom traces its origins to the Overseas Bank of Manila which opened in Binondo, Manila in 1963.

​BankCom marked its 60th anniversary in 2023, ending the year with a record high net income of ₽2.8 billion, outperforming its full-year 2022 profit of ₽1.8 billion by 56%, the highest growth among listed Philippine banks. BankCom maintains a network of 140 branches and 250 automated teller machines (ATMs) as of March 31, 2024, strategically located nationwide.