Lucio Tan’s Philippine National Bank (PNB) is anticipated to name former Union Bank of the Philippines Chief Edwin Bautista, as its new President following a special board meeting today.
Sources have informed that PNB’s board of directors will convene today to approve Bautista’s appointment.
The leadership of the listed bank will transition from Florido Casuela to Edwin Bautista. This follows Casuela’s assumption of the role in 2022. It was after Jose Arnulfo “Wick” Veloso’s appointment to the Government Service Insurance System.
Bautista’s career at UnionBank spanned 27 years. His tenure instrumentally evolved the bank into a prominent digitalised and retail lending-focused entity.
Bautista previously served as Senior Brand Manager at Procter and Gamble. He was also the Marketing and Sales Director for the Philippines and Guam at American Express International, and Vice President and Group Head of Transaction Banking at Citibank.
Sources indicated they also considered other candidates for the post. The list included Citi Philippines CEO and Country Head Paul Favila, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Others are President and CEO Eugene Acevedo, former UnionBank President Victor Valdepeñas, and PNB Executive Vice President and Head of Global Banking and Markets Dondi Baltazar.
Meanwhile, 83-year-old veteran banker Casuela will remain on the PNB board as a Board Advisor. Insiders said that the lender aims to strengthen its digital transformation and retail lending initiatives. They were the two areas where PNB was lagging behind its competitors.
PNB, which has focused on corporate lending, has been implementing a strategic transition to infuse fresh perspectives into its leadership.
The shift began in 2021 with the appointment of Lucio Tan III to the board. The company then designated him Vice Chairman in 2024. Tan is the grandson of Lucio Tan, the bank’s Chairman Emeritus.
Aside from the appointment of Edwin Bautista as its President, PNB is also expected to announce new members to its board. Recently, the bank nominated Cesar Villanueva, former Dean of the Ateneo de Manila Law School. His job is to succeed 95-year-old Estelito Mendoza, who has served as a legal advisor to Tan for decades.
Additionally, PNB is appointing two new Independent Directors: Judith Lopez, former Chairman of Price Waterhouse Philippines/Isla Lipana & Co., and Marcia Uy, former Treasurer of Rio Tinto and Pilipinas Shell.
They will replace 75-year-old Felix Enrico Alfiler, a former Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Assistant Governor, and 91-year-old Domingo Yap, former President of the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc.
Featured image credit: Edited from Freepik
