After seeing strong demand for its recent sustainability bond, the Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) announced it is considering another bond issuance next year, with the potential for a larger size if loan demand spikes.

BPI Chief Financial Officer Eric Luchangco told reporters last week that the bank will delay any new bond issuance until 2026, while closely monitoring the market, noting that 2025 is already a tight timeline.

“It’s probably a bit late into the year. So I think it would be difficult to get it out. Not impossible, but I wouldn’t expect it,” Luchangco said.

While BPI has yet to target a specific size, Luchangco said lending growth will be among the major determinants, noting that loan demand could change as there are still a few months left before the year ends.

“Our fundraising is straight from the demand. If there are a lot of opportunities for us, then we’ll do a larger size. But if it looks like growth is not going to be that strong, then we don’t need to do that,” Luchangco said.

At end-September, BPI has seen lending expand by 13 percent from the same nine-month period in 2024.

“For the rest of the year, I think it will probably be in that range. We’re nine months into the year, so that’s more or less the trend of the year,” he added.

Luchangco also said BPI has an interest in issuing blue bonds “soon,” banking on the “strong” take-up of the recently issued sustainability bond and the bank’s passion for the ocean.

“We’re looking at the blue bonds. It’s really something we want to try,” he said. He said it is inevitable for the bank to have blue bonds, but the only thing uncertain is the timeline of the issuance.

For Luchangco, funding requirements are among the challenges the bank faces, adding that it will issue a blue bond—either global or local—once they are ready to come to the market, which he believes is already available.