Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCOM), the financial arm of tycoon Lucio Co, said Tuesday it raised P7.69 billion from the issuance of fixed-rate bonds.
PBCOM said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the bonds, with a tenor of one-and-a-half years and a fixed interest rate of 6.0796 percent per annum, represent the first tranche under the bank’s P15-billion peso bond program.
The bonds were listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) on Tuesday. “The offering of our peso fixed rate Series A Bonds due 2026 was closed more than a week ahead of schedule due to robust demand, resulting in an oversubscription of 3.85 times the initial amount,” PBCOM president and chief executive Patricia May Siy said.
“This is a true sign of the market’s confidence in our efforts over the past years, which have delivered a solid track record in asset, revenue, and profit growth,” said Siy.
The bank said it would use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including refinancing debt obligations, diversifying funding sources and supporting loan growth.