San Miguel Corporation affiliate Bank of Commerce (BankCom) has upsized its peso bond offering by almost four times its original offer size due to strong demand from retail and institutional investors.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the bank said it achieved its biggest peso bond offering to date, raising in less than three days a record P18 billion versus its minimum offer size of P5 billion.

The dual-tranche fixed rate bonds due 2027 (Series C Bonds) and fixed rate bonds due 2030 (Series D Bonds) exceeded the minimum offer size by 3.6 times, sprinting a short public offer period from Jan. 28 to 30, 2025.

“We appreciate the strong support of investors and are elated that one of our shortest peso bond offerings has also become the largest in BankCom’s history,” BankCom President Michelangelo Aguilar said. 

He noted that investors’ “overwhelming response reflects their confidence in the bank’s strong fundamentals, and their preference for a clear and solid business strategy continues.”

BankCom printed P10.01 billion in Series C Bonds, which have a tenor of two years and a fixed interest rate of 6.1942 percent per annum; and P7.99 billion in Series D Bonds, with a tenor of 5.25 years and a fixed interest rate of 6.3494 percent per annum. 

The bonds, which were issued as the third tranche of BankCom’s increased P50 billion Peso Bond Programme, were listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) on Feb. 19.

Proceeds from the issuance will be used for management of the bank’s balance sheet, diversification of funding sources, and general corporate purposes.

BankCom appointed ING Bank N.V. Manila Branch (ING), Philippine Commercial Capital, Inc. (PCCI Capital), Security Bank Capital and Investment Corporation (Security Bank Capital), and Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners for this issuance. 

BankCom also acted as a selling agent for the offering, together with ING, PCCI Capital, Security Bank Capital, and SCB.

As of September 2024, BankCom recorded a net income of P2.2 billion, a 10 percent increase from the P2 billion reported in the previous year. Return on equity stood at 9.27 percent, more than double the bank's IPO prospectus ROE of 4.22 percent.

The bank’s healthy profit was backed by growth in its core lending business. Net interest income was up by 11 percent year-on-year. Growth was registered across all lending segments.

The bank also saw growth on its service charges, fees, and commissions driven by revenues from its investment banking, credit card, and trust businesses.