BDO Private Bank, part of the Philippines’ largest bank, has never been a technology laggard. Even before Covid-19, it understood that digital offerings are not just a necessary evil, but a game-changing differentiator.
In the last year, says president Albert Yeo, BDO Private Bank continued to invest significantly in its digital platform, communication tools and cybersecurity in all aspects of bank operations and at all levels – making it Asiamoney’s best private bank for digital in the Philippines for 2022.
That’s not to say Yeo took his eyes off results in the short term. BDO Private reported a net income of more than $18.4 million in 2021, while trust assets under management rose 9% over 2020 levels to $10.5 billion. The loan portfolio grew 10%, year on year, to $67 million.
This is where being part of a large, tech-savvy bank works to the private bank’s advantage. Parent BDO Unibank is accelerating digitization efforts to ensure that pandemic-driven shifts toward online engagement live on and deepen.
These fresh digital initiatives don’t just revolve around the bank’s technology infrastructure but involve a redesign of internal operational processes. The bank is endeavouring to be more agile, responsive and innovative – which means adding functionality to BDO’s mobile payment options.
Moving with the times, the wealth management group is honing its office-anywhere approach to client servicing. It has conducted webinars more frequently, presenting not only economic briefings but talks on lifestyle interests as well. A digital edition of BDO’s Managing Wealth magazine was published for the first time in 2021.
In the year ahead, Yeo’s team plans to marry its digital prowess with its leading position in the sustainable investment space. Here, too, synergies with the broader BDO Unibank give private bank customers access to headline-grabbing transactions.
In January, for example, BDO successfully raised the equivalent of $1 billion of peso-denominated fixed-rate Asean sustainability bonds. The final size was more than 10 times the original offer of about $95 million, thanks to strong demand from retail and institutional investors, as well as high net worth individuals. It marked a new milestone, as the deal was by far the largest for any Philippine financial institution or company.
It’s clear that BDO’s big bets on sustainable investments are paying dividends as the pandemic prompts rivals to get on the ESG bandwagon. Combine that with top-notch digital tools for high net worth clients and BDO Private’s proposition only rises.