MANILA, Philippines -- Nine rural banks in the Philippines are under investigation for "potentially unsafe and unsound banking practices," the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the country's central bank, said Wednesday.

The banks, which have been put into receivership, declared holidays earlier this month after depositors rushed to withdraw their money.

The central bank said it had been "monitoring these banks well before the global financial turmoil because of potentially unsafe and unsound banking practices". It did not elaborate these practices.

It stressed: "These banks represent a tiny fraction of the banking system and... the Philippine banking system remains stable, highly capitalized and highly liquid."

The central bank said the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. would take over the lenders' assets to protect depositors while insurance claims are processed.

The central bank examined the books of the nine lenders last year, but they all secured lower court rulings that stopped the its policy-making Monetary Board acting on the report of that probe.

The Supreme Court in turn blocked the lower court writs last month, enabling the central bank to act against the nine, the central bank statement said.

The banks are the Dynamic Bank, Rural Bank of San Jose, San Pablo City Development Bank, Rural Bank of Paranaque, Rural Bank of Bais, First Interstate Bank, Pilipino Rural Bank, Bank of East Asia, and Philippine Countryside Rural Bank.