DBP signs P4 billion loan with Batangas LGU

MANILA, Philippines — State-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has extended a P4 billion loan to the local government unit of Batangas to support the province’s capacity building programs.

In a statement, DBP president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Herbosa said the bank has signed a P4 billion term loan agreement with the provincial government of Batangas to finance projects that aim to accelerate the province’s economic growth.

“DBP is honored to be a part of the long-term and inclusive growth of Batangas province. We share the optimism of the provincial government in harnessing Batangas’ full economic potential,” Herbosa said.

Under the loan agreement, the bank will help fund the construction of public offices, school facilities, health, livelihood and persons-with-disabilities centers and solar-powered irrigation systems, among others.

Herbosa said the financing support would cover the acquisition of various agricultural and industrial machinery and equipment to benefit the province’s transportation, health, agriculture, engineering, and information technology sectors.

He said the agreement also signals the start of the bank’s long-term partnership with the government of Batangas to help improve the delivery of community services to the province’s residents.

“DBP’s support will come a long way in extending the much-needed assistance and long-term services for our constituents in the province,” Batangas Governor Hermilando Mandanas said.

DBP is the eighth largest bank in the country, with total assets amounting to P700.9 billion as of end-September 2019.

It provides loans to strategic sectors such as infrastructure and logistics, small and medium enterprises, social services and community development, and the environment.

In the first nine months of the year, DBP broadened its support to priority sectors, disbursing P329.1 billion in loans or 33.8 percent more than the P246 billion posted a year ago. 

The bulk of the bank’s loan portfolio went to the infrastructure and logistics sector, which accounted for nearly 40 percent of loan releases at P152 billion.

This was followed by social services, which got loans amounting to P67.33 billion; environmental projects, with P44.6 billion and micro, small and medium enterprises, with P24.6 billion.

According to the latest data, the bank’s net income in the first nine months dipped by 1.56 percent to P4.42 billion from P4.49 billion in the same period last year.

Nevertheless, Herbosa has expressed confidence that the bank would be able to meet its P5.9 billion net profit target for the year.