RCBC concludes share sale to Japanese bank

MANILA, Philippines — Yuchengco-led Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) has completed the sale of a 15-percent share to one of Japan’s largest banks as part of plans to support its long-term asset growth and digital investments.

In a regulatory filing, RCBC announced the financial completion of the sale of an additional 15.01-percent stake to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC).

This brought SMBC’s aggregate ownership to 20 percent from 4.999 percent.

The conclusion of the deal will be subject to post-sale requirements and activities.

In November last year, RCBC approved the fresh P27 billion in new capital to RCBC through the increase in the shareholding of SMBC.

RCBC said the P27 billion capital infusion would reinforce the bank’s growth trajectory, particularly in its core businesses in corporate, small and medium enterprises, and retail segments.

It will also allow RCBC to expand the reach of its sustainable finance framework.

“Through this partnership, RCBC will once again set the bar higher, adopting global best practices and customer centric strategies, promoting disruptive banking solutions and expediting digital transformation,” RCBC president Eugene Acevedo said.

Further, the bank said closer collaboration between the two financial institutions will open more business matching opportunities for RCBC’s local customer base and SMBC’s global network.

RCBC is the fifth largest private bank in the country in terms of assets. It has a P1.17 trillion balance sheet and loan portfolio of P588 billion as of end-June.

SMBC, on the other hand, is the commercial banking arm of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and is one of the largest banks globally present in about 40 countries.