Digital Banking

BPI to Sell Entire Stake in GoTyme Bank Following Strategic Review

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has decided to divest from digital bank GoTyme, selling its entire stake acquired following the merger with Robinsons Bank Corp (RBC). This involves offloading 752,056,290 common shares, with the transaction valued at roughly P902.47 million.

Eric Roberto M. Luchangco

This move, approved by BPI’s board of directors on 20 March and pending approval from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), is attributed to a lack of sufficient alignment in collaborative efforts, as per Eric Roberto M. Luchangco, BPI’s Chief Finance Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer. Following the merger’s completion on 1 January, BPI inherited a 20% interest in GoTyme Bank from RBC.

A significant portion of these shares, specifically 744,099,587, is set to be acquired by GoTyme Financial Pte. Ltd., with the remaining 7,956,703 shares going to Giga Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd., a minority investor in GoTyme Bank.

At the same time, GoTyme Bank’s strategic stakeholders, including Gokongwei-led JG Summit Capital Services Corp. and Tyme Group, have agreed to purchase BPI’s minority stake, reaffirming their position as principal shareholders.

Nate Clarke

Comments from Nathaniel D. Clarke, President and Chief Executive Officer of GoTyme Bank, and Lance Y. Gokongwei, President and CEO of JG Summit Holdings, Inc., have expressed a positive outlook on the bank’s trajectory since its commercial inception in late 2022.

Despite exceeding initial expectations and bolstering confidence in its growth potential, there’s a clear emphasis on GoTyme Bank’s future challenges and opportunities.

GoTyme Bank, resulting from a collaboration between the Gokongwei and Tyme groups, is among six digital banks licensed by the BSP. With its commercial operations starting in October 2022, the bank aims to increase its customer base significantly by the end of the year and projects profitability within the next few years.

This announcement coincides with BPI reporting a 61.13% increase in attributable net income to P54.82 billion in 2023, alongside a slight increase in its shares, underscoring a period of financial growth and strategic reevaluation within the institution.

Featured image credit: Edited from GoTyme