Aboitiz-led UnionBank opens newest flagship branch in Cebu, attends to residents affected by 'Odette'

MANILA, Philippines — Marking another milestone in its bank transformation efforts, Aboitiz-led Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) opened its 150th Ark branch in Cebu last Nov. 29, 2021.

Aimed at continuing to provide superior customer experience in its physical touchpoints, the country’s first fully-digital bank branch opened its doors at the Queen City of the South. 

Remaining grounded on their Cebuano roots, the Aboitiz family has always held the Cebuano people close to their hearts and they continue to be a major contributor to the progress of Cebu.

Innovation is a key driver of the Aboitiz businesses and the opening of UnionBank’s newest flagship branch is a testament to this.

Similar to the Ark branches nationwide, The Ark Cebu Exchange Arthaland bridges physical banking with digital banking for Cebuano customers. It has no queuing and features paperless, straight-through transactions, robust self-service machines, uniquely designed space with cozy conference and semi-private rooms plus multi-talented Branch Ambassadors who are specially trained to help customers enjoy the benefits of digital banking. 

Strategically located in Cebu IT Park, The Ark Cebu Exchange Arthaland is in one of the most preferred investment regions in the Philippines. The branch is at the Ground Floor of the Cebu Exchange Tower at Salinas Drive in Lahug, Cebu City and is open Mondays to Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

First unveiled back in September 2017, UnionBank’s Ark branch introduced pioneering features that changed the way people looked at banking, leveraging technology to address the typical inconveniences associated with visiting a bank branch.

The Ark has no singular blueprint. Each Ark branch is unique and has a modular layout which allows it to adapt its design to deliver the best customer experience, considering the unique needs and branch banking behavior of the local customers that it serves.  It can even be transformed into a venue for exclusive events.

UnionBank’s branch transformation helps enable digital adoption by allowing customers who prefer to transact in physical branches to also experience the benefits and features of the Bank’s digital innovations.

This is part of UnionBank’s thrust to promote financial inclusion and stay true to its commitment that as it blazes the trail towards digitally transforming the way it does banking, “No one gets left behind”. And, true to this promise, the Ark branch at Arthaland is able to serve Cebuanos who need access to ATMs as other banks continue to be affected by the power and network outages caused by super typhoon Odette.