BSP expects credit activity to pick up in coming months

‘Strong’ banking system, accelerated vaccination program to provide boost

The Philippine banking system remains stable amid the COVID-19 crisis and in a strong position to service the financing requirements of the recovering economy, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

More importantly, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said in an online briefing that credit activity was expected to improve in the coming months amid the accommodative policy stance of the central bank, the national government’s accelerated vacsustained cination program, as well as the implementation of safety measures and granular lockdowns in the National Capital Region.

This view is consistent with the results of the latest banking industry survey which showed that credit outlook remained positive with double-digit growth in the next two years.

As of end-July 2021, total loans declined by a slower rate of 0.4 percent year-on-year to P10.8 trillion compared to the 5-percent decline a year ago.

Diokno said the positive performance of the Philippine banking system “is evidenced by growth in its assets, deposits and capital, as well as ample capital and liquidity buffers and loan loss reserves.”

Assets up 5.4%

Based on end-July 2021 preliminary data, the banks’ total assets grew by 5.4 percent yearon-year to P19.8 trillion.

Bank assets were primarily in the form of loans (52.6 percent) and portfolio investments (26.6 percent). Funding came largely from deposits, which grew by 7.2 percent during the period to P15.4 trillion, indicating the public’s continued trust and confidence in the banking system.

Meanwhile, the gross nonperforming loan ratio stood at 4.5 percent as of end-July 2021 but was accompanied by a high bad loan coverage ratio of 82.4 percent. This remains within the BSP’s and banks’ projections for the year.

The operationalization of the Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer Act will also provide banks with a standby facility to offload their nonperforming assets in case these post a sharp increase, Diokno said.

Moreover, banks maintained sufficient capital and liquidity buffers. For the first half of 2021, the capital adequacy ratios of the universal and commercial banking industry further improved to 17 percent and 17.6 percent on solo and consolidated bases, respectively, and remained higher than the 10 percent regulatory minimum.

Healthy liquidity buffers

Liquidity buffers also remained well-above the minimum threshold of 100 percent. In particular, big banks’ solo and consolidated liquidity coverage ratios stood at 198.4 percent and 196.4 percent, respectively, as of end-June 2021. Meanwhile, the net stable funding ratio of the the country’s largest banks remained high at 144.4 percent and 144.5 percent, respectively, on solo and consolidated bases, during the same period.

“The BSP will continue to adopt policy reforms on risk governance aimed at promoting the continued safety and soundness of the financial system against the backdrop of rapid advancements in technological innovations, an evolving financial ecosystem and the increasing attention towards the attainment of social and environmental goals,” Diokno said.