BPI sees 13% loan growth in 2025

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) said Monday it expects a low-teen loan growth this year as the lender continues to shift its books from institutional loans to consumer and small business loans.

According to BPI chief finance officer Eric Luchangco, BPI is looking at low-teen loan growth of 12% to 13% in 2025, after increasing by 13.2% to P2.3 trillion in the first quarter of the year, driven by the growth of non-institutional loans during the period.

“I think we’re currently minded that we can continue to expect it to carry along at this rate but of course, you know, the year’s not yet done and a lot can still happen but we’re quite comfortable sticking with our original projections,” he said.

According to BPI president and Chief Executive Officer Jose Teodoro “TG” Limcaoco, the bank targets to have non-institutional loans account for 30% of the bank’s total loan portfolio.

“I think it’s more important to stress also that we’ve been very focused on transforming our loan book from what we call institutional loans to the non-institutional. Non-institutional are consumer loans, small business loans,” he said.

“About four or five years ago, non-institutional loans were only about 21% of our book. As for the first quarter, that’s at 28.8%,” he added.

Driving the optimism, BPI said, are the growth of the lender’s credit card sector, its partnerships with developers and brokers for mortgages, and the growth in financing for electric vehicles and hybrid models. The bank now has over 20 partners and nearly 6,500 partner doors where consumers can apply for deposits, loans, and insurance.

For this year, Limcaoco said BPI is looking to post another banner year, after recording a record P62.0-billion net income in 2024, up by 20%. Revenues for the year increased 23% to P170.14 billion.

“I certainly hope so. Our plan is to have net income this year that will exceed last year’s net income and if you take a look at our first quarter results, I think we should be fairly on track,” he said.

BPI reported a 9.0% growth in its net income for the first quarter of the year to P16.6 billion from P15.3 billion the same period last year. Revenues climbed 13.1% to P44.7 billion, with net interest income up 15.3% and non-interest income up 6.3% P10.3 billion.

“The momentum we have built is strong, and if we stay focused, determined, and continue to do our best, there is no limit to what we can achieve. Let us take on 2025 with enthusiasm and confidence, knowing that our best days are still ahead of us,” Limcaoco said. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News