PNB-Allied Bank merger moves closer to completion

MANILA, Philippines - The merger between Philippine National Bank (PNB) and Allied Banking Corp. is expected to be completed next month, a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) said.

PNB informed the PSE that it had already secured approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission, paving the way for the merger to be finally consummated.

“We now have all the necessary regulatory approvals to implement the legal merger by February 2013,” PNB corporate secretary Doris Te said.

Te also informed the PSE that they had received the go-signal from Financial Services Authority (FSA) of the United Kingdom on the change in control of Allied Bank Philippines Plc and PNB (Europe) Plc.

The PNB official likewise said the SEC has approved the corresponding amendment to PNB’s articles of incorporation reclassifying its preferred shares into common shares.

The SEC also approved the increase in the number of PNB directors to 15 from the present 11.

But with the merger pushing through, it was not immediately known if PNB’s next move would be to pursue further talks on the proposed merger with the Ayala-controlled Bank of Philippine Islands (BPI).

Earlier, PNB insiders said talks with BPI would likely stretch as it would be the bank’s priority to merge with Allied Bank, both owned by tycoon Lucio Tan.

“If ever, it would take time before the BPI-PNB-Allied merger could be consummated. Provided, the Ayalas and Tans agreed to enter into a merger talk, there would be due diligence and I doubt if they could finish it in one quarter. This is a long process,” sources said.

BPI president Aurelio Montinola III earlier hinted that if the merger pushes through, they would be preparing for a “global package” as he admitted there are advantages for banks to go bigger these days.