PDIC to settle part of Unitrust’s deposit claims Sept 9

MANILA, Philippines - Part of the deposit claims of the shuttered Unitrust Development Bank (Unitrust) will be settled on Sept. 9, the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. said yesterday.

PDIC said it will start distributing cash payments, which represent partial settlement of claims of the closed bank’s depositors and creditors.

“To receive the payment, Unitrust depositors and creditors are required to appear personally or through a duly authorized representative... on their designated schedule,” PDIC said, noting the location for claims is at Unitrust office at the Exchange Corner Building in Makati City.

The schedule, meanwhile, is published in The Philippine Star’s Sept. 1 issue and at the PDIC website (www.pdic.gov.ph).

The PDIC requires depositors to present two valid IDs and a duly accomplished and notarized Release, Waiver and Quitclaim with Undertaking. Depositors and creditors are also advised to check the PDIC website for additional requirements and downloadable forms they may need.

“Unitrust has sufficient funds to pay all the claims,” PDIC Executive Vice President Cristina Q. Orbeta assured depositors and creditors.

At the same time, the PDIC reiterated depositors and creditors are ordered to appear before the liquidation court on Sept. 10.

Unitrust has been ordered closed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Jan. 4, 2002 and placed under the receivership of the PDIC, which was also tasked as the liquidator of the bank’s assets.

As of end-July, the PDIC has already paid P110.15 million in deposit insurance claims involving 6,592 Unitrust accounts. Total deposits of the bank amounted to P235.59 million, half or P116.2 million of which were uninsured. PDIC noted the uninsured deposits are claims against the bank’s assets.