MANILA – Being stable allows any company to face the effects of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), a bank executive said on Tuesday.
During a virtual annual stockholders meeting, Asia United Bank (AUB) chairman and director Abraham Co said the physical distancing policy of the government is a challenge to service-oriented firms and in the case of AUB, its officials need to immediately implement a solution to be able to cater to their clients.
“You should always be prepared by being very, very stable especially for a bank,” he said.
Co said the bank has an obligation to help their clients with their banking requirements, but also has the obligation to ensure the bank’s financial stability.
“So, we have to review all the accounts one by one to ensure that all of these are addressed and our consumers are properly helped as financially viable where they are warranted,” he said.
AUB president Manuel Gomez said business recovery will generally be “very slow until a vaccine is deployed.”
He said the bank will take advantage of the policy measures implemented by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) like the policy rate cuts, the reduction in the reserve requirement ratio (RRR), and increased incentives for extending loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to ensure business expansion this year.
“AUB will strengthen relationships in line with this endeavor. We will boost our digital and contactless products and services, which show significant potential,” he added.
Last year, the bank posted a 35-percent increase in net income to PHP4.5 billion, from PHP3.29 billion in 2018.
Capital adequacy ratio (CAR), a gauge of a bank’s financial health, improved to 17.99 percent from year-ago’s 15.11 percent.
BSP’s minimum requirement is 10 percent.
This year, Gomez said aside from deepening tie-ups with MSMEs and further improvement on information technology, they will also increase low-cost funding sources and strengthen manpower training and development.
He said it pays to adapt and adjust on the situation and have a forward-looking goal.
“By recognizing the changes in our way of life, we will move quickly and confidently to address this. We are ready. Yes, there is danger, but there is also an opportunity to shape the future,” he added. (PNA)
