MANILA, Philippines — Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) continues to expand the presence of its microfinance arm to reach more unserved and underserved communities nationwide.
Rodolfo Mabiasen Jr., head of financial inclusion and microfinance solutions at BPI Direct BanKo, said the bank has opened nine more branches in different parts of the country to support self-employed microentrepreneurs (SEMEs).
“The opening of BanKo in different municipalities nationwide forms part of our plans in establishing our presence in more areas as we rise above the challenges brought by the pandemic. Now that we are again gaining momentum, we are aggressively opening more branches to fulfill our mission to provide financial services to more individuals and to help more SEMEs advance their businesses,” Mabiasen said.
BanKo’s newest branches that are ready to serve communities within the area and nearby municipalities are in Coron, Palawan; Bocaue, Bulacan; Zaraga, Iloilo; Banate, Iloilo; Dagupan, Pangasinan; Mangatarem, Pangasinan; Manaog, Pangasinan; Isulan, Sultan Kudarat; and Malungon, Sarangani.
It now has 309 branches nationwide offering clients an easy and affordable business cash loan that helps SEMEs grow and expand their businesses.
In its new locations, BanKo will also be able to offer its clients easy and affordable loan products, such as its BanKo NegosyoKo Loan, a cash loan product that gives SEMEs additional capital to help expand their businesses.
BanKo’s street-smart financial advisers called BanKoPares and BanKoMares will provide guidance on how SEMEs can manage their finances and will help them process the requirements for their loans.
Borrowers can apply for loans from as low as P25,000 for working capital and minor business expansion to P300,000 for major business expansion.
Since its launch in 2016, BanKo is now present in 74 provinces with a total of 309 branches across the country.
Latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that BanKo is the country’s 10th largest thrift bank in terms of assets and capital with P18.44 billion and P3.2 billion, respectively, as of end 2021.
BanKo ranked 11th in terms of deposits with P14.28 billion and 10th in terms of loans and receivables with P11.27 billion as of end December.