BIZ BUZZ: Veterans Bank’s RFO retires

MANILA, Philippines — Mission accomplished.” With that in mind, former Finance Secretary Roberto F. de Ocampo is retiring as chair of Veterans Bank.

De Ocampo has served Veterans Bank with distinction for 12 years, initially taking on the role of chair and CEO at the behest of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Department of Finance.

They trusted him to revitalize and reform the venerable institution. And he did just that. Throughout his tenure, De Ocampo spearheaded comprehensive reforms that transformed the bank’s governance structure. He replaced and strengthened its Board of Directors, and modernized its policy frameworks and management systems.

Veterans Bank detailed in a statement his major accomplishments.

READ: De Ocampo is new chairman of Veterans Bank

De Ocampo successfully championed the passage of a new Veterans Bank Charter, by working closely with legislators, regulators and key stakeholders. Under his leadership, the bank navigated the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining financial stability and resilience.

He also led efforts to raise the bank’s capital to meet BSP’s standards for commercial banks, thus ensuring its long-term viability and competitiveness.

As De Ocampo concludes his tenure, he leaves behind a legacy, one that will continue to guide and inspire its future.

De Ocampo caps his tenure with a fully capitalized bank and a record profit for the first time in its history.

He certainly leaves behind huge shoes that will be a challenge to fill.

But de Ocampo is not saying goodbye entirely as the Veterans Bank board has expressed its intention to retain de Ocampo’s services in some capacity.

This way, he will in a position to continue to provide his unique guidance towards realizing the bank’s desired positioning and objectives. —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

DST on dollar deposits?

After the presidential veto of thorny provisions of the Capital Markets Efficiency Promotion Act, there’s still an unresolved issue awaiting government resolution after all.

While President Marcos invoked his line-item veto power to maintain the exemption of foreign investors’ foreign currency deposit unit (FCDUs) income from the 20-percent withholding tax, there’s confusion among banks whether FCDU time deposit is subject to documentary stamp tax (DST).

We heard that the bankers who are part of the open market and tax committees of the Bankers Association of the Philippines are divided on this issue.

Some banks argue that the tax exemption kept by Mr. Marcos covers even the DST on FCDU time deposit, while others think that the instrument is taxable and exempt only from the withholding tax.

“It seems that the law is silent, so it’s subject to one’s own interpretation,” a banking source told Biz Buzz.

The provisions are too vague that even the bankers could not agree among themselves.

It’s something that the Bureau of Internal Revenue will have to clarify as soon as possible.

We’re not talking about a negligible amount here. FCDU deposit liabilities of the banking system stood at $55.46 billion as of end-December, 97.6 percent of which are owned by residents (and deemed as additional buffer to the country’s gross international reserves.) —Doris Dumlao-Abadilla

Competition? Bring it on, CBS says

China Bank Savings (CBS) prides itself as one of the country’s top thrift banks. But its president, James Dee, reiterated that the ultimate goal is serving the unserved and underserved market to further financial inclusion.

READ: FINANCIAL INCLUSION STRATEGY

As such, Dee said they were happy with the entry of BDO Network Bank into the same space.

After all, both companies are under the SM Group.

“We are happy to welcome them into the thrift banking space as there is a real need for more players to service the financial needs of the unbanked,” he said during the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting on Thursday.

“Our company vision to become the leading savings bank preferred by the markets we serve is rooted in service. But that goal is secondary to fulfilling the mandate given to us by the BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) of providing financial services to all Filipinos,” he added.

Dee said more players would only improve both competition and cooperation in the industry, making the consumers the real winners as a result. —Tyrone Jasper C. Piad 

/rwd