Metro South Coop Banks wants to be the leading national coop bank

DABA HEADS METRO SOUTH CO-OP BANK, VOWS TO STEER IT TO BE THE LEADING NATIONAL CO-OP BANK ; CALLS FOR MERGER AND CONSOLIDATION


Isagani B. Daba, since last month (May 2, 2011) has assumed the presidency of the Metro South Cooperative Bank (MSCB), vowing to achieve the latter's vision to be the leading national cooperative bank and to implement the bank board's recently-approved resolution to go into merger and consolidation with other cooperative banks.

Addressing the 15th Annual General Assembly of MSCB, held last June 4, 2011, Daba said, "If we are to achieve our (MSCB's) mission as the leading cooperative bank, then, we should be leading in merger and consolidation with other co-op banks."

He informed that: "This is the fastest way we can be one strong co-op bank. We are aware of parallel efforts by other groups, like NATCCO, for example, and we are happy that somewhere down the road, we will be able to come up with only one cooperative bank that will really service the needs of all primary cooperatives in this country."

He also reported that there had been earlier discussions involving leaders of MSCB on going into merger and consolidation.

Merger is when we combine two entities or businesses and only one will survive, or remain. On the other hand, consolidation is where two or more entities will combine, but there will be a new entity absorbing the others which have agreed to consolidate.

Following are excerpts from Daba's remarks, explaining on MSCB's merger and consolidation plans:

"...Why are we moving into merger and consolidation? It is safe to say that MSCB is a big co-op bank, and a very stable co-op bank with a 'Camels' rating of 4. This is the best proof that we can offer in saying that we are very stable.

But the reality is that we are still a P1-billion bank. We sound big,but in reality, we are very, very small. Even if we combine the 40 remaining co-op banks out of the original 56 - even if we combine these, the total resources will not even reach P15-billion. Wala iyan sa pinakamaliit na commercial bank.

Our services are very limited. Until now, we are limited to lending only. Why can we not go into the ATM business? Because it needs a big capital requirement. What if it is a P15-billion bank? Do we have the capital outlay in relation to total resources? That is the advantage.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is now offering incentives to encourage merger and consolidation among co-op banks. There are many advantages. One of these is that if we have sufficient capital requirements, we can open branches and offices anywhere we want to go.

Again, the reality of MSCB is that we are a one (1)-unit operation. Our address is auspicious -Makati, but we have only one office. If you are from Quezon City, will you go to Makati just to deposit your savings to MSCB at Makati?

If we are availing ourselves of the (merger and consolidation) incentives, we can have our branching license. Then, we will be able to continue our mandate as the bank of cooperatives. That is one of the results of merger and consolidation, because we can then comply with the BSP's capitalization requirements.

I think that the other thing that they are pushing now is how we can maximize our network of cooperatives in order to implement electronic banking -fund transfer. A big rural bank in Mindanao has for its big source of income is not from loans, but from fees.

Even in remote areas, this rural bank has ATMs. They earn fees from these ATMs. These are just some opportunities, in addition to those mentioned by our guest, BSP Deputy Gov. Nestor Espenilla, in his speech.

We believe that we will be able to do it, through this merger and consolidation. Through this, we can accomplish our mission - to be the leading co-op bank. If not, MSCB will remain in the sidelines at Eduque St, Makati City.

Thank you...."

(Note: From MSCB's souvenir program, Daba is described as follows: " Mr. Daba has been in the cooperative movement for 40 years. A seasoned co-op volunteer, advocate and professional, he is an experienced banker. Among the past positions Mr. Daba held include being the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Offiers of Coop Life Insurance and Mutual Benefit Association (CLIMBS); Director of First Community Coop Bank; Coop Bank of Surigao Del Sur; Coop bank of Davao del Sur; and Coop Bank of Cebu. An active member of perhaps the biggest cooperative in the country (First Community Cooperative in Cagayan de Oro), with P5-billion asset, and over 142,000 members, Daba served said cooperative as Chairman, for five terms; Vice Chairman for 11 terms; and as its Treasurer for 6 terms. ). (END)

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