PNB cleared by BIR, BSP to offer PERA

PHILIPPINE NATIONAL Bank (PNB) has secured regulatory approval to offer a Personal Equity and Retirement Account (PERA) product starting this month.

PNB’s trust banking group was allowed by the Bureau of the Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to offer the instrument, the lender said in a statement on Wednesday.

PERA is an investment tool created under Republic Act 9505, which aims to encourage Filipinos to save up for their retirement. It is designed to complement the mandatory contributions made by public and private sector workers to the state pensions Government Service Insurance System and Social Security System.

“Through PERA, we are making it easier for Filipinos to save and build their retirement fund. We support the BSP in offering this savings plan to help Filipinos live comfortably in their sunset years,” PNB President and Chief Executive Officer Jose Arnulfo A. Veloso said in the statement.

An investor can open up to five accounts, where contributions are capped at P100,000 per year for residents and at P200,000 for overseas Filipinos.

Contributions to PERA are voluntary and clients can invest any amount at any time as long as the annual limit is not exceeded.

PNB is part of the PERA ecosystem through its PNB PERA Bond Fund. Clients may start with investments as low as P1,000.

“As an investor or contributor, you can redeem your PERA contributions once you have reached 55 years old and have contributed for at least five years. In addition, qualified distributions made upon the death of the contributor are not subject to estate tax, making it an ideal estate planning tool,” PNB Chief Trust Officer Jiah R. Santos said.

BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno last year said the government wants five million Filipinos to have a PERA in the next five years after they launched an online platform to make this more accessible.

PNB’s income surged to P20.388 billion in the second quarter from P52.597 million a year earlier as its core businesses recovered from the levels seen at the height of the crisis in 2020.

The Tan-led lender’s shares closed at P20.20 apiece on Wednesday, up by 10 centavos or by 0.5% from its previous finish. — L.W.T. Noble