Robinsons Bank Corporation

“2019 is a year of achievements for Robinsons Bank. We received various commendations from local and international award-giving bodies for the multiple products and services that we launched. Above all, the Bank was named as the 2019 Best Commercial Bank in the Philippines by International Banker Banking Awards. It was also this year that our maiden Php10-billion bond issuances were successfully raised and were 4x oversubscribed. These are testaments that the Bank is gaining traction in the market and a validation of the public’s trust and confidence, given our size.
RBank aims to be one of the leading banks in the country. Guided by the Bank’s vision, our tools and strategies are in place to drive the Bank towards its goal of becoming significant in the banking industry. The Bank is currently in expansionary mode, anchored on lending and supported by multiple initiatives launched to support the growth of our stable fee income sources.
Furthermore, the Bank will leverage the JG Summit ecosystem on its synergies among the businesses. Likewise, we will continue to deliver unique solutions to the Philippine market. With all of these, we remain bullish that the Bank will navigate further and reach higher towards a direction of a universal bank status.
Together with the senior executives and the support of the 1,845 RBankers, I trust that in Robinsons Bank, the Future is Bright.”
- Elfren Antonio. S. Sarte,
President and Chief Executive Officer

Robinsons Bank Corporation (RBank) is the financial services arm of the JG Summit Group of companies. RBank is one of the fastest growing commercial banks in the Philippines in terms of capitalization and asset size. As a full-service commercial bank, RBank has placed customers in the front and center of its business, delivering hallmark value, convenience and innovation through a wide array of solutions, products, and services — covering lending (corporate, consumer, mSMEs, and motorcycle), deposit-taking, foreign exchange, trust and investments, credit cards, cash management services, remittances, and bancassurance, and building lasting customer relationships along the way. Completing the spectrum of the RBank footprint across all market segments, RBank, through its subsidiary, Legazpi Savings Bank offers teachers loans, microfinance, and all other banking services of a savings bank.

2019 Financial Performance and Key Developments

After a historic record of breaching the Php100 billion level of assets back in 2017, RBank continued to deliver strong financial performance. In 2019, amid a challenging operating environment characterized by global and domestic headwinds, RBank posted a 127% hike in consolidated net income of Php719 million compared to Php317 million earned last year. This achievement was backed by the 17% expansion of gross loans to Php80.2 billion vs same period last year. The growth in lending activities was driven mainly by the sustained strong performance of the gross consumer loans jumping 32% to Php30.2 billion. RBank’s total consolidated assets stood at Php131.1 billion, up by Php9.8 billion compared to 2018 levels.
The growth in the bank’s balance sheet is a testament of the success in implementing various strategic initiatives. As a result, there have been strong improvements in core revenues. Net interest income, which accounted for 85% of total operating income, rose 19% to Php4.2 billion, attributed to the upswing in interest-earning assets.
Total non-interest income jumped 30% to Php757 million on the back of 31% increase in service fees, a steady source of fee-income due to the launch of multiple products and services. These growths were supported by hefty trading gains from treasury business activities. Overall, gross operating income rose by 22% to Php5.0 billion.

₱131.1 billion, +8%

Total Assets

₱719 million, +127%

Net Income

₱80.2 billion: +17%

Gross Loans
Operating expenses increased 15% to Php4.2 billion driven by steady branch and business expansion. Volume-related operating expenses, which accounted for 68% of the total operating expenses, also grew 15%.
Notwithstanding loan growth, the Bank’s sound credit policies reflected a healthy loan portfolio quality with gross non- performing loan (NPL) ratio at 1.7% and net NPL ratio at 0.8%. These ratios were better than industry’s 2.0% and 1.0%, respectively. The Bank’s NPL coverage was at 115.6%.
For 2019, RBank shifted to a more stable fund source. We successfully completed its Php10.0 billion bond issuances in two tranches. The initial tranche in August was 4x oversubscribed of the book build. The Philippine Rating Services Corporation (PhilRatings) rated the bond “PRS Aa minus” with a Stable outlook, a notch below the highest rating. The second tranche issued in November was 4.3x oversubscribed. PhilRatings assigned Robinsons Bank an issuer credit rating of “PRS Aa minus” with a Stable outlook. The Capital Adequacy Ratio and Tier 1 Capital ratio were 17.5% and 16.6%, respectively, remaining well above the regulatory minimum requirement.

In addition, new products and services were introduced in 2019.

We kicked off the year with a new partnership with JCB International Co., Ltd. for JCB merchant acquiring and card issuing business. With the relative advancements of electronic payment, RBank is geared up on offering flexible payment solutions to complement JCB’s product offerings. RBank and JCB inked an agreement that will allow acceptance of JCB-issued cards in our Point-of-Sale (POS) machines. By April, the Bank has reprogrammed its POS machines to start accepting JCB cards and by December, JCB was made available online through Cebu Pacific. This opens our business to millions of JCB cardholders worldwide.

In early June, the retail banking group launched IPONsurance®. This product offers a valuable alternative deposit product — a combined savings account with a FREE insurance coverage. For as low as Php20,000 to open and maintain an account, this product insurance coverage can go as high as four (4) times the account average daily balance (ADB) or up to Php4.0 million maximum, with no medical check-ups or clearances required (subject to terms and conditions).
Towards the latter part of June, the lending business introduced Go! Salary Loan online channel. Employees from accredited companies can request online for a multi-purpose personal loan and if qualified, will receive approval within 1-2 days. The loan is collateral-free with easy payment terms through salary deduction and is a completely paperless process, streamlining the company’s Human Resource processes while supporting JG’s sustainability campaign.
Agency banking enables RBank to extend its services beyond traditional branches by allowing 3rd-party non-bank agents to provide basic banking products and services. Agency banking was piloted in five (5) agent locations in July. Customers can now perform and transact cash withdrawals and bills payment. In 2020, RBank will be expanding the number of agents as well as the services that will be offered.
In August, to help increase gross billings, credit card fee revenue, and promote credit card loyalty, Robinsons Bank introduced the Balance Transfer (BT) and Convert to Cash (C2C) features of the Credit Card products. Balance Transfer is a credit card feature where a cardholder can transfer the balance from their other credit card/s to their Robinsons Bank credit card. While the Convert to Cash is a feature where a cardholder can convert the available balance of their Robinsons Bank credit card to cash. Both BT and C2C features may be availed with a one-time fee and paid back in installment of up to 24 months at 0% interest.
Last October, Robinsons Bank’s credit card business, in partnership with Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. (RRHI), launched the Robinsons Cashback Credit Card to the market. This product allows clients to live life lighter and to generate more rewards as they earn rebates when they shop at any Robinsons store and other affiliated brands. For a minimum single receipt purchase of Php3,500, users can earn 3% rebate. If the transaction amount falls below Php3,500, rebate will be 0.50%.
In 2019, we have also expanded our market presence, reaching a broader geographic network through 168 operating branches and 338 ATMs nationwide. RBank also introduced the hybrid branch concept, called 24R Hub. This branch format provides exceptional customer experience and simplifies the customers’ journey through digital banking facilities and self-service hubs, along with traditional banking services. Through the digital self-service hub, clients can do banking transactions such as account opening, online payments, and more through digital touchscreen platforms, without the hassle of queuing and filling physical forms. The 24R Hub branch also has a Collaborative Hub, which houses conference areas for face-to-face client transactions. Customers can also do Anytime Banking through the 24/7 ATM Cash Withdrawal and the Cash-In Deposit ATM. The three hybrid branch concept branches are located in BGC – Rizal Drive, Adriatico, and Cyberspace Gamma.
2019 was a year of recognition for Robinsons Bank. Award-giving bodies acknowledged the Bank’s efforts in supporting its clients and stakeholders.
  • “2019 Best Commercial Bank” by International Banker Banking Awards
  • “2019 Fastest Growing Commercial Bank in the Philippines” by Global Business Outlook Awards
  • “DOS® Card as the Most Innovative Credit Card Product” by Global Business Outlook Awards
  • “Simplé Savings® as the Most Innovative Banking Product” by Global Business Outlook Awards
  • “Simplé Savings® as the Best Financial Inclusion Program” by Bank Marketing Association of the Philippines
  • “Highest Percentage of Contactless Transactions for Merchant Acquiring Business” by Visa Philippines
  • “Silver Anvil in the Public Relations Tools (External Publication) category for its 2018 Annual Report, Simplifying the Customer Journey” by 55th Anvil Awards
  • “2019 Project of the Year – RBank’s Treasury IT Solutions Opics Project” by Finastra, the third largest Financial Technology provider in the world

5-Year OGSM

In 2019, RBank ended its five-year plan Roadmap 2020 where the Bank’s strategies were defined in three phases: Capacity Building, Core Income Growth, and Expanded Business Ventures. This initiative led the Bank to achieving advancements in industry rankings with more than double growth in assets, loans, and deposits.
In the fourth quarter of 2019, RBank’s new five-year strategic plan Roadmap 2024 was initiated. Guided by the OGSM framework, Robinsons Bank sets forward its objective to be within the top 10 Philippine banks. In the next five years, the goal is to grow the assets 4x and this will be delivered through solid growths in core lending and supported by low-cost deposit-taking activities. The Bank will continue to grow and strengthen its recurring income from its core businesses. Likewise, net interest income is expected to expand on better net interest margins. Despite the growth in the lending business, the Bank will remain to have sound credit-underwriting standards to ensure non-performing loan ratio will be lower than industry average. The Bank’s coverage ratio will be kept above 100 percent – enough to cover prospective loan losses. On the non-financial aspects, the Bank will continue to introduce new products and services to support growth and drive the innovation index target by 2024. Moreover, sustainability will be integrated in the way it does business.
Robinsons Bank will continue to increase presence in the community it serves and will focus to grow its business in defined markets and geographic targets. The Bank’s business model in achieving its objectives will be guided by four major enablers: (1) Customer-centricity, (2) Channel Strategy, (3) People Strategy & Winning Culture, and (4) Accelerators.

Future Business Outlook

Guided by Roadmap 2024, the year 2020 for Robinsons Bank is built on five (5) Big Goals. Embedded in these goals are strategies on how to continuously expand the business, increase the number of customers, design of new products and services, plan for geographic expansion, redesign and restructure of capacity building, and implementation of digital initiatives.
The Bank will follow every step of the execution plan. However, we will also be agile if there are calls for requirements and solutions which demand collaborations and adaptations of new plans.
We are confident that the Bank will be able to continuously deliver double- digit growths.