IN BRIEF

RCBC’s profit rose 70% in first quarter

RIZAL Commercial Banking Corp., a member of the Yuchengco Group of Companies and one of the largest banks in the country, said Thursday net income in the first three months climbed 70 percent year-on-year to P3.6 billion on sustained strength of business segments.

RCBC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the annualized return on equity improved to 13.3 percent, while annualized return on assets reached 1.3 percent.

Total resources expanded 20 percent year-on-year to P1.2 trillion, with the steady buildup of earning assets—customer loans went up by 10 percent and investment securities rose by 27 percent.

Accounting for 18 percent of asset growth for the period, the bank’s loan portfolio focused on higher yielding segments such as small and medium enterprises went up by 18 percent, consumer loans up by 14 percent and credit card receivables up by 46 percent.

“We are reinforcing our sales network to enable wider and efficient coverage, guided by the data science and analytics to further understand customer needs and serve them better,” RCBC president and chief executive Eugene Acevedo said in a statement. Julito G. Rada

Globe wants streamlined procedures

GLOBE Telecom Inc. on Thursday asked the government to institutionalize streamlined procedures to obtain permits, licenses and certifications for telecom infrastructure.

The company is a strong advocate for the extension of the Anti-Red Tape Authority’s Joint Memorandum Circular which took effect at the height of the pandemic in 2020.

The JMC enabled the company to fast-track its infrastructure buildup amid increased demand, with close to 4,500 cell sites built from 2020 to 2022, twice as fast as network builds from 2017 to 2019 and more efficiently than in previous years.

Globe, in a letter transmitted to the President by the Private Sector Advisory Council, underscored the urgency of the request.

“Institutionalizing the JMC as an Executive Order is one of the critical steps towards serving the geographically isolated areas. Hopefully, we can fulfill the President’s promise of making connectivity universal as a vital component to ensure that no citizen is left behind,” Globe Group president and chief executive Ernest Cu said.

Darwin G. Amojelar

PalawanPay subscribers exceed 10m

PALAWANPAY, the e-wallet app from Palawan Pawnshop Group said it has reached 10 million users, making it one of the fastest-growing e-wallet apps in the Philippines.

“PalawanPay is continuously innovating and adding new features and services to the app to better serve its growing number of sukis. Customers can expect more exciting and useful features in the app as PalawanPay continues to improve and expand its services,” said Palawan Pawnshop Group business executive officer Third Librea.

The growth is fueled by the app’s wide array of financial solutions like the unique send money feature that enables customers to transfer funds and cash out from any of the 10,000 authorized branches and agents of Palawan Express Pera Padala located throughout the country. App users can also enjoy the benefits of more affordable cash-in and cash-out rates with PalawanPay, resulting in significant savings. The app offers lower Instapay fee at P10 to send money to other banks and e-wallets compared to P25 charged by competitors. The scan-to-pay option allows customers to conveniently pay for their purchases, making PalawanPay a versatile e-wallet app that provides convenient and accessible payment solutions. Othel V. Campos jobs in the recent US visit of President Marcos, an indication of American investors’ renewed interest in the country.

“We hope to attract FDIs in advanced manufacturing, EV industry, RE development, mineral processing, regenerative agriculture and frontier technologies particularly in digital health, fintech, blockchain, AI and big data—to boost our mix of industries and valueadding in the ecozones,” Panga said.

“We remain positive that more investments will come to the Philippines with the big-ticket investments that we secured during the President’s visits to Japan, the US and Switzerland, among others,” he said.