Salmon Bank, which started as the Rural Bank of Santa Rosa, Laguna, plans to infuse P600 million in fresh equity before the end of the year and another P600 million in 2026 to support its aggressive expansion, digital transformation and bid to become a thrift bank.
The total P1.2 billion in fresh capital will raise the bank’s capitalization to P1.4 billion by the end of 2025 and P2 billion by 2026, comfortably exceeding the P1-billion minimum capitalization requirement set by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for thrift banks, it said.
“That’s our rough estimate of what the bank needs,” said Salmon Bank co-founder and chairperson Raffy Montemayor in a briefing Wednesday in Makati City.
“There’s a lot more that the parent company has to inject, but you want to make sure that you’re injecting it at the right time as it’s needed by the bank,” he said.
Since its acquisition by the Salmon Group in January 2024, the tech-enabled financial institution has seen rapid growth. Deposits have grown nearly fivefold over the past six quarters, reaching P1.8 billion as of September 2025, while net income stood at P189 million as of end-August.
Salmon Bank is channeling its growing deposit base into profitable loans and digital investments. The bank’s loan portfolio has grown steadily to P1.6 billion, consisting mainly of product loans and personal loans.
“We use the deposits in profitable loans to invest in a better user experience for all,” said Montemayor.
Around 60 percent of the bank’s lending is channeled through retail store financing, with its loan products now available in five thousand retail outlets nationwide. The bank plans to double this retail outlet base next year. Despite the rapid growth, the bank has maintained a sound asset quality with its gross non-performing loan ratio at just 2.9 percent.
Time deposit products remain a key driver, offering yields that allow clients to double their money in 10 years.
Montemayor said interest rates were recently adjusted from 8.88 percent to 6.5 percent to reflect the easing monetary environment.
To strengthen its physical presence, Salmon Bank plans to open three flagship branches in Bonifacio Global City, Cebu IT Park and Cagayan de Oro in 2026, adding to its existing branches in Santa Rosa, Laguna and Bacoor, Cavite.
By next year, the bank will also roll out a suite of daily banking products—including deposit, payment, and lending services—designed for mobile-native Filipinos.
