RCBC strengthens sustainable advocacy

MANILA, Philippines — Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) has amended its sustainable finance framework, aligning its principles with global standards to promote responsible financing and protect natural resources.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, RCBC said it followed the guidelines on eligible blue projects by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the guidelines for blue finance of the International Finance Corp. (IFC).

RCBC’s framework is also aligned with the green bond principles, social bond principles and sustainability bond guidelines of the International Capital Market Association, the bank said.

The framework is updated with the green loan and social loan principles of the Loan Market Association, Asia Pacific Loan Market Association and Loan Syndications and Trading Association.

RCBC also conformed to the ASEAN Capital Markets Forum on green bond, social bond and sustainability bond standards.

“We remain to be a catalyst for positive change through responsible finance which can help contribute to the protection and restoration of our planet’s invaluable ecosystems,” RCBC president and CEO Eugene Acevedo said.

“The amended framework also reinforces our support in addressing societal needs toward sustainable development,” he said.

The bank’s sustainable finance framework is aligned with the four pillars of green finance, namely the use of proceeds, project evaluation and selection, management of proceeds and reporting.

The Yuchengco-led bank also expanded its eligibility criteria on green projects to include a subset of blue projects in accordance with the SEC and IFC guidelines on blue financing. The eligibility criteria for social projects have also been amended.

The framework was amended with the aid of the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC) Singapore Sustainability Solutions Group APAC. Sustainalytics also issued a second party opinion which affirms the alignment of RCBC’s framework with relevant principles and market practices.

The lender was able to fund over 8,200 projects under eligible green and eligible social categories worth P71.2 billion in 2022.

In January, RCBC raised $400 million from its five-year sustainability bond issuance that was 5.9 times oversubscribed.

The bank saw its net income grow by 1.1 percent to hit a record P12.22 billion in 2023, mainly driven by continued loan and deposit growth.

With total assets of over P1.2 trillion, RCBC solidified its position as the fifth largest private bank in the country.

Supporting the balance sheet expansion, capital rose by 31 percent on the back of the capital infusion by Japan’s SMBC in July 2023.

As of end-2023, RCBC had a consolidated network of 458 branches, 1,460 ATMs and 5,779 ATM Go terminals strategically located nationwide.