BPI Family sees 5 to 10% growth in auto lending

BPI Family Savings Bank (BFSB), the country’s largest thrift bank, targets a 5- to 10-percent growth in its auto lending this year, following a flat performance in 2018, a top official said.

Dennis Fronda, head of BFSB retail lending group, said in a briefing on Thursday that the company was hoping to grow its auto lending along with the recovery of the vehicle industry.

Fronda said the company wanted to mirror the 2019 projection of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) which, together with the truck manufacturing group, reported a 116-percent decline in sales last year.

“With this year’s Campi’s projection of a 10-percent [growth in vehicle sales], we ourselves are looking to grow at 5 to 10 percent as well,” he said.

In the meantime, the automotive industry is preparing for the Manila International Auto Show next week, where BFSB has been a bank partner for nine years now.

In a statement, BFSB said that for loan amounts of P500,000 and up, with a minimum term of 36 months, loan applicants during the auto show would get free comprehensive car insurance, free chattel mortgage fee, lower interest rates on loans and gas cards worth P1,500.

Moreover, there are also promotional packages for vehicles purchased from Ayala Automotive affiliates—Honda, Isuzu, Volkswagen, Kia and KTM—and are financed by BFSB.

These include the P240,000 discount that Isuzu will give for its Mu-X model, or a P100,000 discount which will come with a free KTM Duke200 motorcycle. —ROY C. CANIVEL