ANALYSTS were mixed on the prospects for owning bank stocks as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic puts a damper on earnings.

THE NEED for a national savings program and affordable home financing for working class Filipinos led to the creation of the Home Development Mutual Fund, or more known as the Pag-IBIG (Pagtutulungan sa Kinabukasan: Ikaw, Bangko, Industriya at Gobyerno) Fund on June 11, 1978.

SUSTAINABLE FINANCE or green finance has been gaining traction across the financial value chain due to its economic benefits with environmental, social and governance considerations. Due to its appeal of bringing both sustainability-positive outcomes and investible returns, it is perceived as one of the tools mobilizing capital from the private sector, thereby, filling financing gaps that government funds and development assistance may not be able to fully provide.

“WE HAD A MOTHER and son team who have been managing a gas service station in the Visayas. They would often use their credit cards for their fuel purchases and would regularly pay every two months. They never went to a bank for financing because they did not want to be bothered by too many documentary requirements and continuous negotiations,” shared Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Business Banking Head Eric Luchangco in an e-mail interview with BusinessWorld regarding one of their clients’ experience.

USUALLY, seafarers would have to wait for their ship to dock and go to a bank or a remittance center when they want to send money to their loved ones. With money transfers being made easier thanks to money transfer apps, the same convenience will be extended to seafarers that would enable them to make transactions anywhere in the world, even while at sea.

ANALYSTS are generally bullish on bank stocks this year amid expectations of the central bank to ease monetary policy further in order to support economic growth.

THE FOURTH QUARTER of 2019 saw local financial markets performing relatively sideways with positive factors at home such as the inflation slowdown and catch-up government spending partly cushioning the impact brought by developments abroad.

THE MEASURE TO SIMPLIFY the taxation of passive income, financial services and transactions was borne out of the need to be more competitive in attracting foreign capital and investments in order to finance infrastructure projects and promote inclusive growth through generation of more and higher quality jobs.

ONE doesn’t tend to think about where the modern conveniences of life come from. Among the things we take for granted is the dependence on electricity in day-to-day living.

IN LATE AUGUST, the state-owned United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) announced that it signed a partnership with government-run Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund to lend its digital platform in disbursing loans and benefits to about 14 million members.

LOCAL financial markets performed well for the most part in the third quarter, buoyed by positive developments at home amid a slew of uncertainties abroad.

AMID strong earnings results for banks and market expectations on lower borrowing costs, analysts are once again warming up to bank stocks.