Cebuana Lhuillier Bank opens first Cebu branch

CEBU, Philippines —  Cebuana Lhuillier Bank (CLB), the banking arm of Cebuana Lhuillier group, opened its first branch in Cebu kicking off its active expansion plan in Visayas and Mindanao.

Led by Chairman and Founder of PJ Lhuillier Inc., Ambassador Philippe Jones Lhuillier, the Cebu branch is the 6th CLB branch in the Philippines, since it started its rural banking business in 1998 in Bacoor, Cavite.

Located on Acacia street, barangay Kamputhaw, Cebu City, the rural bank aims to aid mom-and-pop businesses by offering affordable loan access, said Cebuana Lhuillier Bank president Dennis Valdes in an interview.

MSMEs have always been the backbone of our economy, with 99% of total businesses in the Philippines considered falling under this sector. They are also a major source of employment, and also a major contributor in our total export revenues. However, in spite their huge contributions to the economy, MSMEs often lack financial resources that will help in their growth and development,” said Valdes.

True to the mission of becoming a partner for progress, CLB’s first-ever branch here in Central Visayas is open to all, especially to the more than 65,000 MSMEs looking to further grow their business, he added.

The bank is also poised to open another branch in Davao City this year.

With loan portfolio of P1.2 billion to date, CLB is extending financial access not only to MSMEs (micro-small and medium enterprises), but also to teachers, and developers, and other corporate business loans.

It is also gaining traction in its affordable motorcycle and housing loans.

According to Valdes, the bank’s aggressive move to open up physical branches, despite the advent of online banking  is in line with the bank’s mission of providing financial inclusion to every Filipino, especially to clients from the countryside.

“CLB in particular, is reaching out to mom-and-pop businesses and to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) whose operations definitely needed a boost following the challenges brought to the economy these past two years,” he noted.

“As a conglomerate, PJ Lhuillier has always been guided by its mission of financial inclusion. We make sure that this is reflected in all the products we offer in our companies, and a vital part of how we extend our services to the millions of Filipinos who rely on us for their micro financial needs. Our banking arm, Cebuana Lhuillier Bank is guided by this vision—from their ground-breaking micro savings product which empowered close to 6M Filipinos to start saving for their future, to their expansion plans to Visayas and Mindanao which will allow them to serve more of our kababayans and MSMEs in rural communities,” said Jean Henri Lhuillier, President & CEO of PJ Lhuillier Group of Companies, the parent company of Cebuana Lhuillier and Cebuana Lhuillier Bank.

As the banking arm of micro financial services giant Cebuana Lhuillier, CLB recently tapped the industry leader to serve as its cash agent, utilizing Cebuana Lhuillier’s more than 3,000 branches nationwide for its Micro Savings product.

The wide network presence provided the bank and its clients greater accessibility; while also enjoying wider connectivity thanks to the mobility provided by eCebuana app, which enables clients to conveniently access micro financial services such as Micro Savings, Money Remittance, Bills Payment, and E-load services among others.