Naga bank depositors seek BSP help

Depositors of the beleaguered Naga City-based G-7 Rural Bank have asked the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to act on their complaints about the bank’s reported failure to meet withdrawal demands.

G-7 depositors flocked to the BSP the other day to air their grievances but BSP Governor Amando Tetangco said there was a process that all banks have to go through to address problems that may arise.

Tetangco refused to make a specific comment on G-7 but said the normal procedure was for the BSP’s Supervision and Examination Sector (SES) to assess the situation.

He said the SES would then examine the complaint and submit recommendations based on its evaluation.

“I can’t comment on particular banks but at this stage, the depositors will have to talk to their bank,” he said.

Since earlier this year, G-7 has stopped paying interests on deposits and was rumored to have filed for bankruptcy amid heavy withdrawals from depositors.

G-7, according to the depositors, offered interest rates of up to 12 percent per annum for time deposits, about twice the prevailing market rate. But since March, it has reportedly stopped paying the returns.

Hounded by rumors, G-7 was also hit by heavy withdrawals as depositors tried to take their money out in anticipation of more serious problems.

In a statement, G-7 announced that it was in a “transition period of upgrading from a rural bank into a thrift bank.”

G-7 said it was in the process of getting a new investor, Finbar Asia Phils. Inc., along with its parent company, Finbar Securities Inc.

G-7 said the Finbar Group was planning to invest new funds by the end of June 2008 but it was not clear whether this infusion actually materialized.

G-7 is owned by businessman Fidel Cu and has been operating for nearly three decades with branches in the Bicol region as well as in Pasig City and Quiapo, Manila.