BPI to expand in Europe despite slowdown

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) will proceed with its plans of expanding its presence in Europe despite the challenging economic conditions worldwide. Remittances from that part of the globe should remain robust, said BPI, which beat rival banks last year in terms of cornering the overseas Filipino market. "We believe in infrastructure building. We believe things will be better in the long run," Teresita B. Tan, BPI senior vice-president and head of the Overseas Banking and Channel Services Group, told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of a briefing Monday. BPI is currently preparing to open four new branches of its London-based subsidiary, BPI Europe Plc. The four new branches, which will be in Milan and Rome in Italy, and Madrid and Barcelona in Spain, were slated to open sometime in June or July next year, Ms. Tan said. The bank opened its European subsidiary in Threadneedle Street in London last year. It opened its first branch in Earl’s Court Garden, also in London, last month. The countries were selected based on high concentration of Filipino workers and migrants, whom BPI provides remittance-related services to, Ms. Tan said. - BusinessWorld