The Bank Assets of the Philippines up and remained stable and resilient as its total resources grew 9.4% in the first quarter of the year, data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) over the weekend showed.
Statistics showed that the total assets of the banking industry reached ₱ 7.12 trillion from January to March this year or ₱ 614 billion higher than the P6.506 trillion worth of resources booked in the same period last year.
Universal and commercial banks accounted for 89.2% of the industry's total assets while thrift banks cornered 8.3% and rural and cooperative banks shared the remaining 2.6%.
The central bank reported that resources of universal and commercial banks posted a double-digit growth of 10% to ₱6.35 trillion in the first quarter of the year from ₱ 5.77 trillion in the same quarter last year.
On the other hand, assets of thrift banks expanded 6.8% to ₱ 592.5 billion in the first three months of the year from ₱ 554.73 billion in the same period last year.
The BSP said the banking industry's assets continued to expand as more Filipinos turn to savings as a sign of the public's trust in the banking sector.
The industry's assets posted a double-digit growth of 11% to ₱ 7.23 trillion last year from ₱ 6.51 trillion in 2009 with Filipinos saving more while major players continued to mobilize deposits to fund new loans.
Data showed that resources of universal and commercial banks expanded by 11% to ₱ 6.42 trillion last year from ₱5.78 trillion in 2009 and accounted for about 89% of the industry's total assets.
On the other hand, assets of thrift banks grew by 13.1% to ₱ 629 billion last year from ₱ 556.1 billion and cornered a share of 8.7% of the total assets of banks.
Peso-denominated deposits increased by 11.2% to ₱ 4.02 trillion last year from ₱ 3.6 trillion in 2009 while foreign currency deposits climbed 4.2% to P1.1 trillion from ₱1.05 trillion. In all, bank deposits grew by 9.6% to ₱ 5.12 trillion last year from ₱4.67 trillion in 2009.
The BSP said the number of banks retreated by 27 to 758 last year from 785 in 2009 due to mergers as well as the closure of some banks. The number of universal and commercial banks was steady at 38 followed by thrift banks with 73 while the number of rural banks fell to 647 from 674.
The data showed that the operating network including branches of the banking system inched up by 2.9% to 8,869 last year from 8,620 in 2009 reflecting mainly the increase in commercial and rural banks' branches or agencies.
Monetary authorities led by BSP Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. believed that 2010 was a banner year for Philippine banks contributing largely to the country's stronger-than-expected economic growth amid the fragile recovery in advanced economies led by the US as well as the debt crisis in Europe.
Tetangco earlier said that the country's sound, stable, and liquid banking system was one of the reasons behind the sustained economic growth after the industry posted healthy growth rates in lending, deposits, and profitability in 2010.
Written by Makisig Bayani
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