RCBC accepts president Tan's 2nd offer to go on leave

The Board of Directors of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) on Wednesday accepted the second offer of its president, Lorenzo V. Tan, to go on leave over the $81 million money laundering scheme involving the bank.

"Tan insisted on taking a leave to allow him to focus on clearing his name in the money laundering issue a board committee is investigating," the bank said in an emailed statement.

SGV auditors and external lawyers are helping the bank in investigating the scheme.

Tan offered to go on leave on March 11, but the RCBC did not accept his request back then.

"The bank’s board thanked him for his gentlemanly and decent gesture, but said their trust in him is intact and unshaken," Tan's lawyer Francis Lim said.

"He was dragged into the issue by Jupiter branch manager Maia Deguito for knowing individuals who allegedly may be involved in the $81-million remittance that is now also the subject of money laundering investigations by the Senate and other authorities," the Yuchengco-led bank alleged in the statement on Wednesday.

During hearings conducted by the Senate blue ribbon committee, Deguito claimed that Tan was friends with Kam Sin Wong, a.k.a. Kim Wong, who supposedly instructed her to create the four bank accounts used in the money laundering scheme.

"So far, no evidence has been presented against Tan linking him to the issue and the board has taken cognizance of the statement of Deguito before the Senate that Tan had nothing to do with the opening of the accounts that received the $81-million remittance," RCBC claimed.

RCBC Chair Helen Y. Dee is taking over as president during Tan's absence. She will be assisted by a management committee, led by Vice Chairman Cesar Virata and Armando Medina.

The company earlier on Wednesday issued an apology for the involvement of its officers at the Jupiter branch in the money laundering scheme.  – Jon Viktor Cabuenas/VDS, GMA News