BPI to Consolidate 13 Robinsons Bank Branches in October

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) will close 13 former Robinsons Bank branches in October as part of its branch rationalization program and plans to expand through agency banking.

According to Maria Cristina “Ginbee” Go, BPI’s head of consumer banking, the bank concluded June with 865 branches, including 157 from Robinsons Bank. Of these, 13 will be consolidated in October.

“We are optimizing and rationalizing by closing branches that are too close to each other and opening new branches in underserved areas,” Go said in an interview in Makati City.

New branch openings are planned for the lifestyle district Azuela Cove in Davao and the Vermosa estate in Cavite, both developed by Ayala Land.

BPI had reduced its branches to under 800 before merging with Robinsons Bank at the start of 2024, which brought the total back to 865 branches. The rationalization program will continue.

BPI is also leveraging the Gokongwei group’s retail presence through agency banking, covering Robinsons Retail outlets and The Generics Pharmacy nationwide. The bank is also set to partner with more companies, with a new collaboration brewing in Cebu.

The company reported a net income of P15.30 billion for the second quarter of 2024, a 0.3% increase from the previous quarter. Net interest income rose 5.2% to P31.41 billion, and net revenues increased by 5.4% to P41.65 billion.

First-half earnings grew 22% year-on-year to P30.56 billion, with net interest income rising 22.2% to P61.25 billion and net revenues climbing 23.8% to P81.18 billion.