PSBank’s bond sale nets P6.3B

Listed Philippine Savings Bank (PSBank) has raised P6.3 billion from the five-day offer period of its peso-denominated fixed-rate bond offering, the funds of which will be used to expand its consumer banking business and diversify its funding sources.

The thrift banking arm of the Metrobank Group said that the bond offering was oversubscribed from the initial target issue size of P3 billion. The two-year fixed-rate bonds was priced at 5.6 percent per annum and will be paid quarterly until 2021.

The lender started the bond sale on 1 July and initially announced the offer period to last until 17 July, but cut it short to 5 July owing to strong demand.

PSBank president Jose Vicente Alde said that they were “overwhelmed by the market reception” for the bond sale and observed strong interest to the from both institutional accounts and retail investors.

“In just five days, the total orderbook was four times oversubscribed allowing us to significantly upsize the transaction to P6.3 billion,” he was quoted as saying in a disclosure to the stock exchange.

The offering is the first tranche of the P40 billion fund-raising program as approved by its board of directors. The offering will be done in multiple tranches, which will allow PSBank to access long-term funding as it widens its consumer banking business and diversify its funding base.

The bonds will be listed in the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. on 24 July. Standard Chartered Bank, Metrobank and First Metro Investment Corp. served as selling agents for the offer.

The Philippine Dealing and Trust Corp. was mandated as registry and paying issuance. Picazo Buyco Tan Fider and Santos was transaction counsel while Development Bank of the Philippines served as trustee.

PSBank generated 10.3 percent higher net earnings in the first quarter of the year, to P680.7 million from P617 million in the same period last year as its consumer loan portfolio expanded 6.8 percent anually to P159.3 billion.

PSBank’s shares were sold for P58.40 apiece as of Thursday, up by 0.43 percent.