Manila Bulletin
Philippines
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Libanan: Minority bloc to allow LBP, DBP merger on one condition
Philippines
National
Libanan: Minority bloc to allow LBP, DBP merger on one condition
Libanan: Minority bloc to allow LBP, DBP merger on one condition
Published Apr 09, 2023 10:01 am
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Updated Apr 09, 2023 10:01 am
The House minority bloc won't oppose the planned merger of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) for as long as Filipino farmers and fishermen won't get left out in the cold.
4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan (Facebook)
This was the simple condition mentioned by 4P Party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan in a statement on Sunday, April 9 amid talks about the merger. Libanan is the House minority leader. In the statement, Libanan highlighted that the LBP's mandate to provide direct credit support to small farmers and fisherfolk should be kept intact. “We must stress that Land Bank is duty bound to allocate at least 5 percent of its regular loan portfolio for socialized credit to agrarian reform beneficiaries, small farmers and fisherfolk,” the veteran solon noted. “So long as this obligation to extend low-cost financing to farming and fishing communities is left unimpaired, we won’t get in the way of the proposed combination of the two banks,” he said, speaking in behalf of the minority bloc. The union of the two banks need a law from Congress for it to come into fruition.
Libanan is also counting on LBP to continue servicing the borrowing requirements of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the provinces. LBP’s mission to promote countryside development has become absolutely imperative, considering that many private rural banks have collapsed over the years, according to the House leader. Since 2012, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has ordered the closure and liquidation of 123 troubled private rural banks across the country, based on Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) records. President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. apparently wants to merge LBP with DBP, with the former as the surviving entity, in a bid to achieve operating efficiencies and cost reductions. The union of the two state-owned lenders would create the nation’s largest bank with P4.18 trillion in assets, according to Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno. LBP, which acts as the official depository of government funds, has 752 branches, 2,810 automated teller machines (ATMs) and over 10,000 employees. Meamwhile, DBP has 147 branches, 836 ATMs and over 3,600 employees.
4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan (Facebook)
This was the simple condition mentioned by 4P Party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan in a statement on Sunday, April 9 amid talks about the merger. Libanan is the House minority leader. In the statement, Libanan highlighted that the LBP's mandate to provide direct credit support to small farmers and fisherfolk should be kept intact. “We must stress that Land Bank is duty bound to allocate at least 5 percent of its regular loan portfolio for socialized credit to agrarian reform beneficiaries, small farmers and fisherfolk,” the veteran solon noted. “So long as this obligation to extend low-cost financing to farming and fishing communities is left unimpaired, we won’t get in the way of the proposed combination of the two banks,” he said, speaking in behalf of the minority bloc. The union of the two banks need a law from Congress for it to come into fruition.
Libanan is also counting on LBP to continue servicing the borrowing requirements of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the provinces. LBP’s mission to promote countryside development has become absolutely imperative, considering that many private rural banks have collapsed over the years, according to the House leader. Since 2012, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has ordered the closure and liquidation of 123 troubled private rural banks across the country, based on Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) records. President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. apparently wants to merge LBP with DBP, with the former as the surviving entity, in a bid to achieve operating efficiencies and cost reductions. The union of the two state-owned lenders would create the nation’s largest bank with P4.18 trillion in assets, according to Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno. LBP, which acts as the official depository of government funds, has 752 branches, 2,810 automated teller machines (ATMs) and over 10,000 employees. Meamwhile, DBP has 147 branches, 836 ATMs and over 3,600 employees.