RCBC ends bond offer early on strong demand
RIZAL COMMERCIAL Banking Corp. (RCBC) said it ended the public offer period for its three-year ASEAN sustainability bonds ahead of schedule after drawing strong demand from both retail and institutional investors.
“RCBC decided to shorten the public offer period following positive and strong demand for the bonds coming from both retail and institutional investors,” the listed lender said in a disclosure on Tuesday.
The offer, which began on March 12, was originally set to run until March 27. Settlement and listing on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. remain scheduled for April 8.
The bonds carry a coupon rate of 6.08% and were offered at a minimum investment of P100,000, with additional increments of P10,000.
Proceeds will be used to finance or refinance eligible green and social projects under the bank’s Sustainable Finance Framework, RCBC said.
The issuance marks the ninth drawdown from the bank’s P200-billion bond and commercial paper program, which was expanded in 2022 from the P100 billion initially approved in 2019.
The Securities and Exchange Commission approved the ASEAN label for the issuance on Feb. 23.
RCBC tapped Standard Chartered Bank and RCBC Capital Corp. as joint lead arrangers and bookrunners, with both also serving as selling agents.
The lender last accessed the domestic bond market in July last year, raising P12.21 billion from a sustainability bond offering, exceeding the P3-billion minimum issue size amid strong demand.
Those notes had a tenor of two years and six months and carried a 6% coupon, bringing total issuances under its peso fundraising program to P99.01 billion.
RCBC also raised $350 million from a five-year sustainability bond issuance in January 2025, priced at 5.375%, under its $4-billion medium-term note program.
The bank reported an 11% increase in net income to P10.6 billion in 2025. Its shares closed unchanged at P24 apiece on Tuesday. — Aaron Michael C. Sy
