Landbank sells ₱50 billion in sustainable bonds as retail orders surge
By Derco Rosal
State-run Land Bank of the Philippines raised ₱50 billion from its latest bond offering after demand from retail and institutional investors surged, far exceeding the bank’s initial targets.
In a statement on Tuesday, Feb. 17, Landbank said orders for the agriculture, sustainability, environment, and socioeconomic development (ASENSO) bonds exceeded 10 times the ₱5 billion minimum.
The final haul also surpassed the Landbank’s ₱30 billion upsize target, prompting an early end to the offer period.
Landbank reported that the bonds drew the lender’s largest-ever retail turnout, with 16,914 investors subscribing via the mobile app, branches, and authorized selling agents.
Notably, the offering marked the country’s first corporate bond issuance available for direct in-app purchase through the Landbank mobile banking app, with a minimum investment of ₱10,000, thereby broadening access to fixed-income instruments.
“For the first time, corporate bonds were made accessible for direct purchase through a mobile banking application,” Landbank President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Lynette V. Ortiz said.
The app accounted for over 7,000 completed transactions across the 1.5- and three-year tenors.
These debt papers were issued under Landbank’s sustainable finance framework, which Moody’s, a global credit rating agency, has recognized as aligned with global sustainability bond standards.
Proceeds from the issuance will finance green and social projects nationwide, Landbank said,
These include renewable energy, food security, affordable housing, employment generation, and other socioeconomic development initiatives aimed at supporting farmers, fishers, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and local communities.
The bonds were officially listed on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. (PDEx) on Feb. 16, allowing investors to trade the securities in the secondary market.
Ortiz, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairperson Francis Lim, and PDEx President Stephanie Marie A. Zulueta led the listing ceremony, which marked the bonds’ entry into the secondary market and provided investors with liquidity ahead of maturity.