Jun. 9--In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Ramon Ang, SMC president, said he sees opportunities for Bank of Commerce (BOC) to work cooperatively with the conglomerate's new businesses.

"We see potential projects we can pursue with Petron [Corp.]. There's a fit between retail banking and Petron's retail network of over 1500 service stations," Ang said, referring to the country's largest oil refiner.

SMC is set to acquire Petron under an option agreement with a unit of UK-based Ashmore Group.

The realignment of the bank's operations is part of the three strategic priorities for the lender, Ang said.

He said SMC also plans to grow the bank's current base of customers, while strengthening its capital position.

Unit San Miguel Properties Inc. and SMC's retirement fund had secured a controlling 51-percent stake in the bank, after an additional P2 billion in equity infusion completed in May this year.

The conglomerate's investment in the bank totaled P4 billion.

"There are a lot more banking services that the [BOC] can provide [SMC], but we need to invest and upgrade the bank's IT systems, management capability and branch locations to make the bank more responsive and compatible to our business needs," Ang said.

Since acquiring a stake in the bank last year, SMC said it has worked with the management for the parent firm's banking services, like cash management and payroll servicing.

The bank also finances the working capital requirements of SMC dealers and suppliers.

"As one of the nation's leading medium-sized banks, we will continue to provide our customers the strength, convenience and financial stability they've come to expect from BOC," Ang said.

He said the SMC name ensures financial strength and the ability to grow, enhancing the bank's ability to weather volatile markets while "it vigorously competes in the banking industry."

Last year, the bank's total deposits stood at P78 billion, and was seen to grow by 41 percent to P110 billion this year due to the synergy with parent SMC.

The bank saw its loan portfolio increasing by 12.5 percent to P45 billion this year from P40 billion last year. The bank had assets of P97 billion last year.

From 117 branches, the bank plans to put up an additional 20 this year to expand its foothold on the middle-market niche.

Besides consumer loans, the bank is also eyeing to allot funds for government infrastructure projects through refinancing in the second half of the year.

The government aims to spend P206 billion for infrastructure development this year, higher than the P166.9 billion last year.

Besides BOC and Petron, SMC is diversifying into the telecoms business with its acquisition of dormant Liberty Telecommunications Holdings Inc., as well as into electricity distribution via Manila Electric Co. and infrastructure.

The conglomerate sold a substantial stake in its domestic brewery, with plans of disposing its international beer business.

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