Philippine Veterans Bank (PBV) is targeting to raise P4.4 billion from its capital raising efforts to attract new shareholders, including post-war veterans, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) retirees and their families.
In a statement, the PVB said the new funds will be used to further strengthen PVB’s core businesses and to fuel expansion. Currently, PVB remains very viable with total assets of P66 billion with P29.9 billion in excess liquidity as of March 2023. Last 2022, Veterans Bank reported a net income of P268 million. The capital raising campaign will be in full-swing this month of June.
Potential new shareholders include post-war veterans such as Korean & Vietnam War veterans and their widows and descendants, as well as retirees of the AFP and their immediate family members. Under the same law, the authorized capital of the Bank was increased from P100 million to P10 billion.
To help generate awareness for the capital-raising endeavors, PVB has also developed a shareholder campaign entitled “Invest in Heroism, Invest in PVB” which aims to invite retired military personnel to buy PVB shares at P110/share at a minimum lot of 100 shares.
Working under this expanded definition of “veterans”, PVB said it has already initiated talks with interested AFP retirees’ groups but plans are underway to ramp up activities to solidify its capital and be able to reach out to individual veterans and to even more AFP retirees’ groups nationwide.
The campaign for new shareholders comes after the passage of Republic Act 11597, or the Philippine Veterans Bank Act, into law last December 2021. Until recently, PVB was owned by over 385,000 World War II veterans and their compulsory heirs. But the Bank’s new Charter changed this provision and now allows other veterans as defined by the law to become stockholders.
The new PVB charter also highlights the provision that maintains PVB’s status as an authorized government depository bank. Under Sec. 28 of R.A. 11597, national government agencies (NGAs), local government units (LGUs), and government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) can make deposits with PVB and recent circulars from the Department of Finance, namely Circular Nos. 002-2022 and 003-2022 have affirmed PVB’s status as an authorized government depository. By extension, being an AGDB allows PVB to continue offering its products and services such as loans and cash management services to government clients.
PVB is a medium-sized, commercial bank owned by Filipino World War II veterans and their heirs and descendants. It operates 61 branches nationwide and caters to both corporate and retail financial markets. As an authorized government depository bank, PVB also offers its banking services to government agencies, government owned corporations, and local government units.