Filinvest says same-name trust bank not its affiliate

THE Filinvest Group has issued a warning to the public on Thursday that it is not affiliated with a certain Filinvest Trust Bank, which carries its name and address.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, Filinvest Development Corp. (FDC) said the bank operator is misusing its company details, which it purports on its website FilinvestTrust.com.

“FDC would like to clarify and advise the public that FDC, and its real estate arm, FLI (Filinvest Land, Inc.), its concerned affiliates and subsidiaries are the exclusive owners and registrants of the trade name and mark Filinvest and have not authorized any other entity to use the Filinvest name/mark,” it said.

It added that its registered business address in Mandaluyong City is not involved with Filinvest Trust Bank, against the latter’s claim that it is its office address.

The banking unit of the Filinvest Group operates through East West Banking Corp. (Eastwest Bank). FDC said EastWest Bank is not connected in any way to Filinvest Trust Bank.

The identified website of Filinvest Trust Bank was no longer accessible as of Thursday.

The Filinvest Group is a Gotianun family-led company with interests in real estate, banking and financial services, power, sugar and hospitality. Earnings of FDC grew 24% to P7.2 billion in the six-month period ending June.

FDC shares at the stock exchange fell five centavos or 0.57% to P8.70 each on Thursday. – Denise A. Valdez