RCBC-SMBC US$460M deal leads Singapore Fintech Festival 2022 highlights
This year saw the first-ever participation of RCBC as an affiliate of the Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), Japan’s second largest multinational banking and financial services institution, as the Japanese bank increased its five percent stake to 20 percent in the 6th largest private universal bank in terms of assets with an additional investment of US$460.8 million (PHP27.13 billion).
Under the deal, SMBC will buy 382 million RCBC shares at PHP 71 each, which is more than triple the current share price and about 1.5 times its book value per share. The stake is also a 61 percent premium to the price paid for its initial 4.999 percent stake acquired in June 2021.
The latest infusion will allow RCBC to expand its core businesses in key customer segments such as corporate, SMEs, and consumer, retail markets including high-net-worth clients, the mass affluent, and the mass market with its massive digital transformation thrust.
RCBC reported a consolidated income of PHP 10.1 billion for the first nine months of 2022, a whopping 88 percent increase from the same period last year, surpassing the PHP 7 billion profit achieved in the whole year of 2021.
RCBC celebrated the Philippines’ digital transformation journey and its pioneering solutions at the Singapore FinTech Festival 2022 at the Singapore Expo on November 2 to 4, 2022. The annual celebration returned as an in-person event for the first time since 2019. During the three-day festival, RCBC showcased the continuous digitalization of the Philippines to more than 90,000 attendees from over 100 countries.
To bring the Philippine digital experience to Singapore in the most immersive way possible, RCBC used hologram-based visuals to promote its digital solutions to the public, such as its all-in finance hub RCBC Digital; multi-lingual financial inclusion super-app DiskarTech; the Philippines’ first neighborhood ATM and largest last mile mobile RCBC ATM Go network; and the latest phygital or physical-digital solution RCBC MoneyBela Barangayan Banking. These innovative solutions from RCBC are important and life-changing milestones for the Philippines’ swift rise toward becoming a digital, financially inclusive country.
“Innovation with empathy is using technology not to impress but to express our genuine understanding of the needs and situations of our customers, and delivering these demand-driven inclusive innovations at scale. The future is not tomorrow, it is now,” Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation and Inclusion Officer Lito Villanueva said in his hologram message.
Visitors from around the globe were most delighted learning about RCBC’s MoneyBela Barangayan Banking, a one-of-its-kind banking solution that combines physical and digital experiences to bring banking to remote and rural areas. RCBC MoneyBela uses sustainble electric tricycles to reach far-flung communities aligned with the environment, social and governance or ESG framework with the United National Sustainable Development Goals. It provides millions of unbanked and underserved Filipinos in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas quick digital transaction accounts while providing personalized basic financial education by banking experience support (BES) agents in grassroots communities.
RCBC is one of the country’s fastest-growing banks, and the most awarded for its banking innovations. It is now the Philippines’ 6th largest privately-owned universal bank from 8th place in asset ranking in 2018. It accomplished and maintained this feat from 2020 to present, even breaching the P1-Trillion asset mark by the end of June 2022 despite the COVID-19 pandemic and various investment activities by competition. RCBC’s continuing digital and business transformation further enhanced its value and reach. RCBC has now become the most awarded Philippines bank. Among its recognitions include being cited as the Philippines’ Best Bank for Digital by Asiamoney for three consecutive years, and back-to-back wins for Best Financial Inclusion App by The Asian Banker’s Financial Technology Innovations Awards.
