PBB merely investing, not engaging in mining

MANILA, Philippines - Publicly-listed Philippine Business Bank (PBB) Inc., the financial arm of the Yao Group of Companies, has clarified that it is not engaging in the mining business.

PBB issued the clarification in relation to its recent disclosure with the Philippine Stock Exchange on its purchase of 600 million shares of Marcventures Holdings Inc. last June 20.

The bank did not disclose the acquisition cost for the MARC shares.

A bank treasury official, who requested anonymity, pointed out that the purchase was just part of the so-called directional investment management account.

“Some of our clients want to invest in a mining company. That is why we bought the MARC shares,” the official said.

MARC is involved in nickel mining operations in Surigao del Sur through its subsidiary  Marcventures Mining & Development Corp. (MMDC).

The area covered by MMDC’s mineral production sharing agreement, is physiologically located in the Diwata mountain range of Surigao del Sur and covers an area of 4,799 hectares. The mine is covered by an environmental compliance certificate issued by the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources.

Last month, PBB was  recently granted 16 branch licenses by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

These new licenses are on top of the 15 restricted  licenses acquired by PBB in 2012,  of which the remaining five will be opened this year.

The new licenses seek to increase the  bank’s footprint  in the  local and regional  market.

PBB offered its shares last Feb. 6 and listed in the PSE in Feb. 19. It raised about P3 billion from the shares offering. Proceeds from offering would be used to finance the expansion of its branches.

PBB’s niche is the small- and medium-scale enterprise (SMEs) sector. Established  more than 16 years ago, it aims to help build strong business communities where the bank operates.

The bank plans to beef up its branch network to 100 from a current total of 79. The new branches are part of the bank’s comprehensive and strategic expansion program that targets both the local market and the region, focused on the SMEs.