LANDBANK welcomes Fitch outlook upgrade

The Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) said it welcomes the latest report of global credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings, Inc., which upgraded its outlook on the Bank to “stable,” alongside improved confidence in the country’s return to strong medium-term growth following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The report published on 30 May 2023, which also affirmed the Bank’s Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at ‘BBB’ and Government Support Rating (GSR) at ‘bbb’, considered LANDBANK’s “strategic and growing policy roles, 100% state ownership as well as its systemic importance as the largest state-owned bank in the country, with market share of about 14% of system assets.”

The ratings agency likewise gave consideration to the “state’s improving ability to support the bank, in times of need, as reflected in the revision of the sovereign rating Outlook to stable,” which was detailed in a separate report the agency published on 22 May 2023.

“The improved outlook from Fitch is a welcome vote of confidence for the Bank’s robust financial stability and resilience to withstand external and domestic economic headwinds. With solid state backing, we will intensify our support to the country’s priority programs and initiatives, towards expediting our complete resurgence from the global pandemic,” said LANDBANK President and CEO Lynette V. Ortiz.

Led by solid governance and leadership, the Bank has continued to build its strong financial muscle to support key development sectors.

It ranks second in the industry in terms of assets at P3.1 trillion and deposits at P2.8 trillion as of the first quarter of 2023, with financial ratios maintained at healthy level. It recorded net income of P10.8 billion in the same period.

The Bank’s capital likewise expanded year-on-year by 3.2% to P225.3 billion, as the Bank expressed confidence that it will reach its projected growth targets by yearend.

LANDBANK is the only State-run Bank that has continued to ramp-up its digitalization drive geared towards providing safe, accessible and convenient banking service to meet the growing needs of customers, with a 30% growth in value of transactions amounting to P735.95 billion for its major digital banking platforms in the first quarter of 2023 alone.

The Bank has maintained its dominance as the biggest development partner of the Local Government Units (LGU) sector towards local development, with all 1,717 LGUs nationwide maintaining deposit accounts with the state-run Bank.

It is the only bank present in all 82 provinces of the country, providing accessible products and services, including to underserved and remote communities.

LANDBANK remains as the country’s biggest Government-Owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC) and the largest credit provider to the agriculture sector, among other key economic sectors, with the financial capacity and resources to fully support the National Government’s sustainable and inclusive development agenda.