Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) headed by bankero Eugene Acevedo has doubled its peso bond and commercial paper program to P200 billion from P100 billion in its bid to raise funds to support asset growth and refinance maturing liabilities.
The Board of Directors of the Yuchengco-led bank approved the increase in its bond and commercial paper program during their regular meeting last Monday.
The listed bank owned by the family of the late taipan Alfonso Yuchengco has almost used up its P100 billion program as it has raised P86.8 billion, leaving a balance of P13.2 billion.
Meanwhile, the stockholders of RCBC approved the amendments to its Articles of Incorporation deleting Article 7 wherein the RCBC’s common shares of stock may be transferred to Philippine and foreign nationals provided that not less than 60 percent and not more than 40 percent of the voting stocks shall be at all times beneficially owned by Philippine Nationals and by foreign nationals, respectively.
This would allow the listed bank to take in additional strategic foreign investors as the amendment allows foreign ownership of the bank to exceed 40 percent.
“RCBC management continuously explores various capital raising opportunities. Some of these opportunities include foreign investors. RCBC is amending its Articles of Incorporation in order to accommodate any capital to be provided in the future by a new/existing foreign investors into RCBC,” the bank stated in an earlier disclosure.
Based on the bank’s 2021 annual report, total equity ownership of foreigners in RCBC’s common shares stood at 28.7 percent or 583.82 million common shares as of end 2021.
Taipei-based Cathay Life Insurance Corp. has a 22.18 percent stake or equivalent to 452.08 million common shares, while Tokyo-based Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC) has acquired close to a five percent stake in RCBC for P4.5 billion last year.
