PHL: China Bank acquires Plantersbank for $41M

China Banking Corp. said it is paying P1.86 billion ($41 million) to acquire Planters Development Bank (Plantersbank).

In a statement, China Bank said it has implemented the share purchase agreement to acquire Plantersbank.
China Bank paid for the 84.77% stake owned by the Tambunting family and related parties, and the Dutch development bank FMO.

Also elected to the Plantersbank board were six directors and three independent directors, who are also directors of China Bank. These are: Ricardo Chua as vice chairman; Nancy Yang, Alberto Emilio Ramos, Alexander Escucha, Antonio Espedido Jr., and Ramon Zamora, as members; and Roberto Kuan, Alberto Yao, and Margarita San Juan as independent directors.

The acquisition of Plantersbank now makes China Bank the 5th largest private universal bank in the Philippines.
As of end 2013, China Bank had 368 branches -- 295 for the main bank and 73 for the savings bank. With the addition of Plantersbank's 78 branches and 2 unopened licenses, the combined branch network is now 448 branches.

The strategic partnership will allow China Bank to expand its small and midsize business (SMB) portfolio, as Plantersbank is the country's largest private development bank and leading bank for SMBs.