PHILIPPINE Bank of Communications (PBCom) on Monday rolled out a P2-billion maiden peso bond offering with an option to upsize.

The bank told the stock exchange that the one-and-half-year Series A bonds, which carry a fixed interest rate of 6.0796 percent, would be offered from October 14 to October 28, "subject to any adjustments as may be imposed."

The bonds are scheduled to be issued and listed on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. (PDEx) on November 5.

Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including refinancing debt obligations, diversifying funding sources, and supporting loan growth.

ING Bank N.V. Manila Branch (ING) is the sole arranger and bookrunner of the bond offer, with both PBCom and ING serving as the selling agents and Development Bank of the Philippines — Trust Banking Group as trustee.

Philippine Rating Services Corp. (PhilRatings) last month assigned PBCom an issuer credit rating of "PRS Aa minus (corp.)" with a "stable" outlook.

PhilRatings explained that the rating differed from the highest-rated corporates only by a small degree and that PBCom has a "strong" capacity to meet its financial commitments relative to that of other Philippine corporates.

PBCom is a midsized player in the domestic banking industry, with total assets of P148.6 billion as of midyear 2024, and loans and receivables showing double-digit growth to P90 billion.

The bank's net income for the first six months of 2024 was flat at P1 billion compared to last year as a 28.4-percent growth in its gross interest income was offset by the bank's elevated interest and operating expenses.

"For full-year 2024, PBCom anticipates substantial growth in its net interest income, but such will be tempered by higher operating expenses," PhilRatings said.

PBCom was recently recognized as one of Forbes Asia's "Best Under a Billion" list for 2024.

"This prestigious list distinguishes the 200 top-performing small and midsized listed firms in the Asia-Pacific with annual sales below $1.0 billion. PBCom was one of only three Philippine-based companies to make the list," the bank said.

The bank's shares last traded at P15.20 apiece last October 10.

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