MANILA — State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) is willing to finance big-ticket infrastructure projects under the Duterte administration’s Build, Build, Build program.
In a briefing Monday, DBP president and CEO Cecilia Borromeo said the bank wants to allocate at least 80 percent of its loan portfolio for infrastructure projects.
She said DBP would really need additional funds to increase its loan portfolio and they plan to back this by more aggressive deposit-taking activities, with the bank eyeing to open 10 new branches and eight extension offices nationwide this year alone.
These offices are expected to bring the bank’s total branches to 135 and the extension offices to 11 by the end of this year.
“Right now we have a very healthy headroom for additional lending to infrastructure projects. And we want to continue to fuel that by low-cost deposits. We want our countrymen to be our partner, transforming their savings into infrastructure projects,” she said.
“If needed, we can also raise funds but that is not yet in our priorities this year because as I’ve said our ratios would show that we still have enough funds to support even a 26 percent growth in loan portfolio,” she said.
Last year, the bank registered a 21.82 percent increase in gross loan portfolio to PHP293.47 billion, 35 percent of which, amounting to PHP76.23 billion, was allocated for infrastructure and logistics projects.
Borromeo also said they also plan to increase the bank’s total assets of PHP597.41 billion last year to about PHP 1 trillion during its jubilee year in 2022.
The DBP chief said they are not allocating any specific amount for the infrastructure projects as long as it is still within the allowable single borrower’s limit set by the central bank.
“This administration would like to be labeled as the administration that supported the infra or the golden years of infra projects in the country. As a policy map we want to support that. That in a way is refocusing or reminding the public that we are the infra bank,” she said.
The National Economic and Development Authority has identified at least 75 infrastructure projects and Borromeo noted that most of these will be funded by official development assistance (ODA) loans while others will be funded partly through private-public partnership.
“Whatever the modality will be we are ready to fund it or partner with them,” she said.
Last year, the bank extended about PHP7 billion worth of loans for 132 projects under its flagship Infrastructure Contractors Support (DBP ICONS) program, which helped improving the capacity of Filipino contractors.
Projects under this financing program include social and transport infrastructures like roads and bridges, water supply, wastewater and sanitation.
Borromeo said the bank also extended last year loans for the construction of about 120 hospitals and 2,486 school buildings, most of which were projects of local government units while other projects were those of private entities.
She said local government officials have been inspired and challenged to provide their constituents services and infrastructure that national agencies have been putting in place.
“We are just very happy to be partnering with those progressive-minded local leaders,” she said.
Borromeo added DBP is also providing financial advisory services to entities like the Bases Conversion and Development Authority. (PNA)
