Bank of Commerce (BankCom), the banking arm of San Miguel Corp. (SMC), said its assets under management (AUM) increased by 63 percent year-on-year to P63 billion in 2021, exceeding its target.

BankCom is a newly-minted universal and commercial bank, pending the release of the central bank’s approval of its unibank license. Under its new setup, it will be the country’s ninth biggest bank and 11th in terms of AUM business.

In a statement, BankCom said its AUM last year grew more than what it had expected due to the expansion of its retail investor client base looking for low-risk and medium-to-long term investments.

“Our efforts to align our investment products with our customers’ needs, enabling them to maximize their revenue potential as we ensure the success of our portfolio, were key factors to our strong performance,” according to the bank president, Michelangelo Aguilar.

Aguilar said the bank’s AUM exceeded its target by five percent due to the better-than-expected performance of its unit investment trust funds (UITFs) and investment management accounts (IMA) “as clients sought more conservative products to better cover for future contingencies similar to the pandemic.”

BankCom’s AUM for UITFs increased by 126 percent while IMAs rose by 65 percent year-on-ear, said Aguilar. Other fiduciary activities (OFA) business for corporate clients also grew by 49 percent year-on-year.

Over a four-year period from 2018-2021, the bank said its AUM expanded by 103 percent with “a better than industry” compounded annual growth rate of 13 percent.

For this year -- and with an expanded unibank license -- Aguilar said cautious investors would still prefer investing in government securities and instruments issued by “credit-worthy companies with strong and consistent cashflows.”

“Attuned to the current risk appetite of our clients, we will continue to grow our AUM by providing them with quality short- or long-term investment opportunities through products and services catering to their financial goals,” he said.

SMC President and CEO, Ramon S. Ang, said BankCom is poised to become a bank that supports the country’s economic recovery, post-pandemic.

“We have seen the many impacts of the pandemic on our economy, on businesses, and our everyday lives. We need to continue finding ways to help more people become resilient and make smarter financial decisions,” said Ang.

“SMC’s businesses are all geared towards improving the lives of Filipinos, whether it’s providing high-quality, affordable products, or building infrastructure to stimulate and sustain economic growth. Banking and financial services are also an important area of focus for us, that is why we’re leaning more heavily on (BankCom) to provide smart financial solutions, whether for ordinary Filipinos or larger corporate clients,” he added.

As both a universal and commercial bank, BankCom can invest in the equities of both allied and non-allied enterprises, and to tap the debt market for their clients’ capital needs. It can offer more products and services to conglomerates and other big business.

At the moment, BankCom operates 140 branches in the Philippines.