BDO improves ranking in list of top 1,000 banks globally

THE COUNTRY’S leading lender Banco de Oro Unibank climbed in this year’s global ranking of banks, rising to 255th place from 268th last year, according to London-based magazine The Banker.

The list of top 1,000 banks around the world – which was published in the July issue of The Banker – showed BDO as the highest ranking Philippine bank, followed by Bank of the Philippine Islands at 338th place and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. at 345th place.

This year’s roster placed BDO at the top of the heap among Philippine banks in terms of core or tier one capital adequacy ratio (CAR), assets, solid performance and robust earnings.  

The Banker’s “Top 1000 World Banks” ranking has been setting the industry benchmark since the 1970s, providing comprehensive intelligence about the health and wealth of the global banking sector. It allows investors and clients all over the world to evaluate the strength and weakness of the banks, identify banking partners for the future, and track the big movers and new arrivals in the sector.

A dozen local banks made it to The Banker’s top 1,000 roster this year. Apart from BDO, BPI and Metrobank, other local banks that earned a slot in this yea’rs ranking are: Philippine National bank (478th); Land Bank of the Philippines (566th); China Banking Corp. (611st); Security Bank Corp. (660th); Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (683rd); Union Bank of the Philippines (754th); United Coconut Planters Bank (972nd); Philtrust Bank (973rd) and Asia United Bank (977th).

BDO, led by the Sy family which runs conglomerate SM Investments Corp., is also now the most valuable local bank with a market capitalization of around P359 billion. BPI is valued at P332 billion and Metrobank at P266 billion.

In 2014, BDO chalked up a record net income of P22.8 billion driven by the strong expansion of its core businesses. Its capital base during the period stood at P180 billion, with both the CAR and common equity tier 1 ratio all comfortably above the regulatory minimum under the Basel 3 framework at 14.6 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively.

In the first six months of the year, BDO posted a net profit of P11.72 billion, 5.9 percent higher year-on-year, translating to a return on equity of 13.2 percent. This marked the highest profits in absolute terms among local banks.

This year, BDO has also bagged the “Best Bank in the Philippines” awards from the following international publications: Asiamoney, Alpha Southeast Asia, FinanceAsia and Euromoney.