Loans issued by foreign currency deposit units (FCDU) of banks increased modestly to $15.8 billion as of end-December 2024 as disbursements exceeded principal repayments, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.

The increase in the last quarter of 2024 was $72.4 million or 0.5-percent higher than end-September 2024’s $15.7 billion.

FCDU loans grew by $658.6 million or more than four percent year-on-year, rising from $15.2 billion at end-December 2023.

During the period, 77.1 percent of FCDU loans had medium- to long-term maturities, or repayment periods of over one year. This was slightly lower than the 77.3 percent recorded in the previous quarter.

Loans to residents totaled $9.91 billion, accounting for nearly 63 percent of the outstanding amount.

Majority of these loans went to exporters ($2.5 billion or nearly 16 percent), transport and other industries ($2.2 billion or over 14 percent), and power generation companies ($1.9 billion or over 12 percent).

Gross disbursements in the fourth quarter of 2024 reached $9.8 billion, down by nearly 55 percent from the previous quarter’s $21.8 billion.

According to the BSP, the decline was “primarily driven by a foreign bank branch’s adjustment in its funding strategy for its affiliate.”

Loan repayments in the period totaled $9.7 billion, down by over 55 percent from the previous quarter’s $21.68 billion. This led to an overall net disbursement.

As of end-December 2024, FCDU deposit liabilities stood at $55.5 billion, down by $2 billion or 3.5 percent from end-September 2024.

Residents held the majority of these deposits, totaling $54.1 billion or nearly 98 percent. These deposits served as an extra buffer for the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) or US dollar stock.

FCDU deposit liabilities rose by $1 billion or nearly two percent year-on-year, reaching $55.5 billion from $54.4 billion in the same period in 2023.