RCBC consumer loans may hit P160B

RIZAL COMMERCIAL Banking Corp. (RCBC) is expecting its consumer loan portfolio to reach P160 billion this year from P126 billion in 2023, driven by targeted campaigns and “innovative” programs.

“As the unit with the highest growth target among RCBC’s business units, the consumer lending group aims to increase its share of growth even further,” RCBC Consumer Lending Group Head Ramil M. De Villa said in a statement on Monday.

RCBC will use analytics to conduct targeted selling, it said.

It also plans to introduce new loan products, upgrade its existing loans management system, and further improve processes and internal sales growth, it added.

“Furthermore, the company’s monthly booking has recorded a 117% year-on-year increase, from P2.482 billion in January 2023 to P5.4 billion in January 2024,” RCBC said.

It added that auto and housing loans saw strong growth in their share in the bank’s total loan portfolio, in addition to credit cards, personal loans, and salary loans.

RCBC’s total loans grew by 16.78% to P643.68 billion last year from P551.21 billion in 2022, its financial statement showed. Of this, consumer loans grew by 29%, driven mainly by credit cards and housing loans.

“That’s how aggressive we are growing the business. We intend to sustain our momentum this year through our strong synergy with one of our biggest shareholders, SMBC (Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.). SMBC has a specific interest in consumer loans,” Mr. De Villa said.

SMBC is the commercial banking arm of Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group.

SMBC increased its shareholdings in RCBC in 2023 to 20% from 4.999%, infusing P27.126 billion in new core equity Tier 1 capital into the bank.

The capital infusion is part of RCBC’s capital-raising plan to support long-term and sustainable asset growth and investments in technology, cybersecurity, and human resources.

RCBC’s attributable net income rose by 1.14% to P12.218 billion in 2023 on the back of higher loans and deposits. — A.M.C. Sy