By the staff
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) plan to reach P200 billion in capitalization is expected to take longer after roughly P46 billion in profits were diverted to the Maharlika Investment Fund over the past two years.
“Well, in that two-year period that we contributed to the Maharlika, that’s roughly P46 billion,” Capule said. “So had there been no Maharlika, we could have added P46 billion to our capital. It should have been around P120 billion by now,” said deputy governor Elmore Capule.
Capule said the BSP could still reach full capitalization within five years if earnings remain stable and no extraordinary demands arise.
He said there is no shortcut to speed up the process. “It depends on the dividends of the BSP. So it really depends on our operations,” he said, noting the central bank “is not a profit-making institution.”
Capule stressed that adequate capital is essential to maintain the BSP’s credibility. “Our position there is that if you have a central bank with a negative capital, it impacts on the credibility. So we need capital,” he said.
Market watchers said the delayed capitalization could have implications for the central bank’s operational credibility, though earnings stability and disciplined fiscal management remain key factors for maintaining confidence in monetary policy.
