BPI earnings rose to P16.6B in Q1; banner year ahead

BPI president Jose Teodoro Limcaoco. Photo by Meg Adonis

MANILA, Philippines – Stronger lending in the consumer and micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) segments buoyed the net income of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) in the January to March period by 9 percent to P16.6 billion, with the company already expecting to exceed its full-year earnings record.

BPI president Jose Teodoro Limcaoco confirmed to reporters on Monday that this was their highest first-quarter earnings to date, citing robust loan growth.

The Ayala-backed bank said its top line grew by 13.1 percent to P44.7 billion, driven by a 15.3-percent climb in net interest income.

READ: BPI nets record P62 billion in 2024

Noninterest income, meanwhile, jumped by 6.3 percent to P10.3 billion.

Growth of noninstitutional loans, or those covering consumer and MSMEs, resulted in BPI’s gross loans expanding by 13.2 percent to P2.3 trillion.

The loan expansion resulted in BPI’s nonperforming loans ratio rising to 2.26 percent from 2.12 percent in the same period last year.

As of end-March, the total assets of the country’s third largest bank reached P3.3 trillion, representing a 6.9-percent uptick.

Healthy loan growth

This year, Limcaoco said they were hoping to exceed BPI’s 2024 record-high net income of P62 billion.

“If you look at our first quarter results, I think we should be fairly on track,” he said during a press briefing.

Limcaoco also pointed out that loan growth would likely be at 12 to 13 percent, still driven by the noninstitutional segment.

In the first quarter, the segment grew by nearly 30 percent. It also accounts for 28.8 percent of BPI’s total loan book, although the bank aims to grow this to 30 percent.

“We’re not slowing down the growth in noninstitutional loans,” Limcaoco said. While this type of loan typically carries more risk, Limcaoco pointed out that the segment also carried higher margins, therefore increasing profitability.

Interest rates for noninstitutional loans are usually higher compared with rates offered to larger clients, like large corporations. INQ