Bank of the Philippine Islands seeks slower provisioning

Lender upbeat on ‘solid’ 10-15% growth in 2010 after incurring flat total revenue in 1Q.

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) expects to make fewer provisions for impairment losses in 2010 than last year's P2.5 billion ($56.08 million) and remains confident of hitting its guidance for profit growth of between 10 percent and 15 percent.

The bank, which is controlled by conglomerate Ayala Corp., on Friday reported a first-quarter net income of P2.7 billion ($60.57 million) equivalent to a 16.6-percent return on equity and a 1.6-percent return on assets.

Net income for the same quarter last year hit a record P2.8 billion ($62.81 million).

"Last year, there were a lot of unusual circumstances [that boosted profit]. This year, we continue to see a solid growth," said BPI president and chief executive officer Aurelio Montinola III.

Impairment losses for the first quarter were P624 million compared with P800 million for the same period last year.

"I think for this year, provisions will be lower than last year because we've provided enough already," Montinola told reporters.

View the full story in Business Mirror.