BANK of the Philippine Islands (BPI) hopes to raise about P40 billion from its planned sustainability bond issue to help refinance debt of the same amount set to mature by yearend.
“We have an amount that’s due for refinancing and our plan is to at least cover enough for a potential refinancing. The bond that we’re set to refinance is around the P40-billion area, but again, it’s all market dependent,” BPI Senior Vice-President and Global Markets Head Jethro Daniel S. Sorra told reporters on the sidelines of an event late on Monday.
He added they could accommodate a larger amount as they are comfortable with their program.
The bank will offer and issue P5 billion in peso-denominated fixed-rate BPI Sustainable Impact Building Our Legacy or SIBOL Bonds with a tenor of one year and nine months, with an option to upsize, it said on Monday.
The public offer period is set to start on Nov. 23 and run until Dec. 4, unless ended earlier. Issue and listing date is on Dec. 16.
The papers will make up the third tranche of BPI’s P200-billion bond and commercial paper program approved in October 2024.
The bank has already issued P90 billion in bonds out of its peso fundraising program.
In January, it raised P50 billion from its two-year Supporting Individuals Grow, Lead, and Achieve or SIGLA Bonds that were priced at 5.405% per annum. This was well above the P5-billion plan and marked the bank’s largest peso bond issuance to date.
In May 2025, the bank issued P40 billion in 1.5-year Supporting Inclusion, Nature, and Growth or SINAG Bonds with an interest rate of 5.85% per annum. These are the bonds that are set to mature in December this year.
BPI may expand its shelf program if the amount raised via its offering of SIBOL Bonds ends up meeting the target, Mr. Sorra said.
“So, it really depends on how much the investor appetite would be. But of course, if the maximum is reached, we will have to go through the proper processes to be able to expand the shelf program,” he said.
“The oversubscription that hopefully or potentially may happen, we would welcome that.
And then there is a bond that is maturing for fourth quarter. So obviously, that gives us some target, at least, in mind. But obviously, refinancing of that bond can come in different fashions. It can come in time deposits or other forms of borrowing where we can ensure that we have the financing to be able to replace the maturity.”
He added they chose a shorter tenor for this issuance as the market remains hesitant about longer-dated debt amid surging bond yields due to inflation concerns.
“One is investor appetite. So, there’s preference for shorter tenors given that we’ve seen an environment where rates have been increasing. I think that’s number one. Number two, we like the tenor because in terms of where the curve looks like, the rates are a bit lower on that end,” Mr. Sorra said.
For next year, BPI will remain “nimble” in its fundraising strategy amid scheduled maturities and volatile market conditions, he said.
“We are mindful of the maturities that we have for next year. The goal obviously for that would be to address the refinancing by some combination of bonds and time deposits and other borrowings that we can employ to be able to meet it,” Mr. Sorra said.
He added that the bank has no dollar-denominated maturities, but remains open to tapping the offshore debt market if conditions are favorable.
“No dollar bond plans as of now. There are no dollar bond maturities for next year. [But] it’s really market dependent. If rates start working in our favor in terms of financing, then we may, we might. But as of now, given that there’s no maturities for next year, it lessens the urgency to explore that level of financing. But of course, we remain nimble. Because at some point, the financing cost might become cheaper on the dollar side. So, I’m not closing doors on the dollar bonds for next year.”
BPI posted a net income of P48.9 billion for the first nine months of 2026, supported by strong loan growth and fee-based revenues.
Shares in the bank jumped by P5.20 or 5.54% to close at P99 each on Tuesday. — Aaron Michael C. Sy