SAN Miguel Corp. affiliate Bank of Commerce (BankCom) wrapped up its peso-denominated fixed-rate bond offering, successfully raising P6.57 billion to refinance maturing debt obligations.
The 1.5-year Series B bonds, offered from April 30 to May 9, were oversubscribed by 1.3 times amid strong demand from institutional and retail investors, BankCom said in a stock exchange filing on Friday.
The bonds, issued as the second tranche of an existing P20-billion debt program, will be issued and listed at the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. on May 16.
"The Series B bonds are exempt from registration pursuant to Section 9.1(e) of the Securities Regulation Code and have not been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission," the bank noted.
The bonds have been rated "PRS Aa" with a stable outlook by the Philippine Rating Services Corp., meaning the bank has a strong capacity to settle the debt.
The peso-denominated bonds would bear a fixed interest rate of 6.5635 percent per annum.
ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch (ING) and Philippine Commercial Capital Inc. (PCCI Capital) were tapped as joint lead arrangers and bookrunners for the offer, with BankCom as the selling agent together with ING and PCCI Capital.
The bank in July 2022 listed the maiden issuance of P7.5-billion, two-year Series A bonds, with an aggregate order book exceeding the original target issue size of P3 billion. The bonds will fall due this year.
BankCom posted an all-time high net income of P2.8 billion last year, the highest since 2008, and up 56 percent from the P1.8 billion it booked a year earlier.
The strong result was anchored on improvements in the core lending business, translating to a return on equity of 9.52 percent — higher than the 7.01 percent recorded in 2022.
As of end-March 2024, the bank had a network of 140 branches and 250 automated teller machines strategically located across the Philippines.
BankCom shares closed Friday up 0.46 percent at P6.62 each amid a 0.47-percent downturn of the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.