The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) said it expects to complete its all-share merger with thrift unit BPI Family Savings Bank by 2022.

BPI will be the surviving entity on Jan. 1, 2022, after the issuance of the Certificate of Merger by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the bank said in a regulatory filing Friday.

“Fees and costs related to the merger shall be borne by BPI,” it said.

BPI Family’s net asset value as of Dec. 29 will be the pricing benchmark determining how many BPI shares will be issued to effect the merger.

The merger plan needs to be approved by at least two-thirds of BPI shareholders at the annual meeting on April 22. The plan will then be submitted to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Securities and Exchange Commission, and other regulators for approval.

“The customers of the combined (banks) will have access to all the products, via all the digital and physical channels, of both entities. The employees of the merged entity will have the ability to work across a larger, more varied bank; and potential synergies will create shareholder value,” the bank said.

BPI first announced its intention to absorb its thrift unit in January.

BPI Family has P278 billion in assets, making it the country’s largest thrift bank. It has 3,000 employees with a portfolio focused on housing and auto loans.

BPI Family raised P9.6 billion from its maiden bond issue consisting of 2.5-year paper in 2019.

In 2020, BPI’s net income fell 25.7% to P21.4 billion as it had to make more loan-loss provisions amid the pandemic.

BPI shares closed at P89 on Friday, up 5.83%. — Luz Wendy T. Noble