And we all thought they were “Subok na Matibay, Subok na Matatag.”
Several branches of Banco Filipino were closed today, March 15 — the second time the troubled bank declared a bank holiday in 26 years.
The bank admitted they are recently experiencing “heavy withdrawals” and blamed the country’s Central Bank for “orchestrating” a smear campaign against them.
An ABS-CBN News report says:
Banco Filipino vice chairman Perfecto Yasay denied, however, that the thrift bank is on a bank holiday but stressed that some of its employees did not report to work on Tuesday amid fears of depositors’ ire.
The thrift bank had difficulty servicing withdrawals and couldn’t clear checks since Friday, March 11.
In a statement, Banco Filipino admitted that there had been “extraordinary financial panic” and “heavy withdrawals” and blamed the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for not acting on their request for a P25 billion financial assistance.
Executives of Banco Filipino claim the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has still not acted on their request for a P25 billion worth of financial assistance and regulatory relief which they are supposedly entitled to get as compensation for Banco Filipino’s illegal closure in 1985.
From GMANews.tv:
“As you are all aware, we have been suffering from extraordinary panic caused by a well orchestrated smear campaign quoting BSP as the source of inaccurate and malicious imputations,” Banco Filipino executive vice president Maxy Abad stated in a March 14, 2011 memo.
“Despite the urgency of all these requests, we have not received any official word from the BSP Monetary Board on the action they have taken, if any. Furthermore, we have also reiterated the immediate implementation of the approved business plan as ordered by the Makati regional trial court,” the bank official said.
The lower court has issued an order prohibiting the BSP, its officials, agents, and any persons acting for and in their behalf from committing any act prejudicial to the operation of the bank, according to the Banco Filipino official.
About Banco Filipino
Banco Filipino (BF) was founded in 1964 by Don Tomas Aguirre. From 1966 until its closure in 1985, BF was the largest savings bank in the Philippines.
On January 25, 1985, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas ordered the bank’s closure over alleged insolvency, although Banco Filipino was seen by most people as a very healthy bank and generally regarded as performing well.
For most of the 1980s, Banco Filipino remain closed, until a 1991 ruling by the Supreme Court declared the bank’s closure illegal. The bank subsequently reopened in 1994, although only fifteen of its original 92 branches remained.
As of 2010, Banco Filipino has 62 branches operating in the Philippines.
Read also:
- Banco Filipino discussion in the PMT Forum
- How to claim money from PDIC – Guide for Legacy depositors
- Largest Banks in the Philippines
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