Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. is eager and willing to make meaningful contributions towards the economic recovery of the Philippines.
Metrobank President Fabian Dee said the bank is in a strong position for both longer drawn lockdowns or a sudden surge in economic activity as it celebrates its 59th anniversary, and is looking forward to helping build back the economy.
Dee attributed this success to the bank’s “institutional wisdom,” gained from past experiences in dealing with crises. “We’ve been through good times and bad times with our Metrobankers, investors, and our customers. And in those times, we learned a great many lessons. We endured and we learned how we can move forward,” he said.
One of the key decisions that helped Metrobank meet the challenges of the pandemic was its decision to increase its loan loss provisions by P40.8 billion in 2020. They did this to cover the anticipated non-performing loans that usually come in the event of an economic slow-down. It proved to be an astute decision over time, translating into a 163-percent loan loss cover, despite the bank’s NPL ratio being one of the lowest in the industry at 2.4 percent.
Metrobank is in peak maturity at its relatively young institutional age of 59 years, possessing what is known in the industry as a “fortress balance sheet” with its capital adequacy ratio at 20.4 percent and liquidity coverage ratio at 262 percent as of June 30, 2021. This further ensures that its clients and investors are well-secured, and the bank poised for more growth.
With a culture founded on malasakit, the bank takes seriously its role as a strong contributor to nation building. The Metrobank Foundation Inc., the bank's philanthropic arm, continues to help support its drive towards economic recovery.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, more than P346 million has been released towards various pandemic aid programs. Most recently, the MBFI awarded P1 million each to ten outstanding members of the military, the police and the educational sector, who made amazing contributions to their respective fields and communities, and will continue to give more grants through other programs.
“Metrobank has been through almost six decades of challenges, in all levels of intensity. We draw from past and recent experiences so that we always come out stronger, better. Because we remember the inevitable boom and busts that come with business cycles, we have built our business prepared for possible downsides,” Dee said.
“We have learned that when you are geared for the downside and are able to recover quickly from this, you too will be most ready for growth when the economy starts growing again. Thus, we are entering our prime age of 59 ready to support our country’s path back to growth in 2022 with the strongest capital base, highest liquidity and best asset quality we have had even before pre-pandemic times. We are well prepared to support the growth of our customers, our economy in the next decades to come, and make each contribution more meaningful to the generations that follow,” he said.
