EastWest Rural Bank
EastWest Rural Bank Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of East West Banking Corporation, a member of the Filinvest Group, led by the Gotianun Family.[37] It is the second largest rural bank in the Philippines in terms of assets.[38]
It was formerly known as Green Bank (or the Rural Green Bank of Caraga), which was a Philippine rural bank based in Butuan and also acquired since 2013 by East West Banking Corporation alongside FinMan Bank, a rural bank based in Pasig. Prior to its acquisition it was the largest bank in the Caraga region in terms of assets, and it had 46 branches.[39][40] It was also one of three rural banks to be affiliated with the Philippine interbank network BancNet since 2006.
History
Green Bank was incorporated with the Filipino Securities and Exchange Commission as the Rural Bank of Nasipit on June 20, 1974. The bank commenced actual operations on April 5, 1975, originally to serve the municipality of Nasipit, Agusan del Norte.
The bank took advantage of a government rediscounting program called Masagana 99, with the intention of helping poor farmers gain access to credit. However, in the 1980s, with the plunge of the Philippine economy into a recession and the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr., Green Bank suffered a very high non-performing loan ratio due to the inability of its farmer-debtors to pay off their Masagana 99 loans. For the next few years, the bank's financial standing gradually deteriorated.
In 1988, the Central bank of the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas issued Circular No. 1126 in 1988, designed to help recapitalize and revitalize distressed rural banks. In the case of Green Bank, it had arrears with the Bangko Sentral amounting to nearly fifteen million pesos, requiring it to recapitalize to cope with capital deficiency. Initially, stockholders refused, although some stockholders eventually agreed to aid the bank's recapitalization.
The bank merged with the Rural Bank of Alegria in 2000, becoming the largest rural bank in the Caraga region. It joined BancNet in 2006, being one of three banks that joined the interbank network.
The bank followed the Grameen Bank
History
Green Bank was incorporated with the Filipino Securities and Exchange Commission as the Rural Bank of Nasipit on June 20, 1974. The bank commenced actual operations on April 5, 1975, originally to serve the municipality of Nasipit, Agusan del Norte.
The bank took advantage of a government rediscounting program called Masagana 99, with the intention of helping poor farmers gain access to credit. However, in the 1980s, with the plunge of the Philippine economy into a recession and the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr., Green Bank suffered a very high non-performing loan ratio due to the inability of its farmer-debtors to pay off their Masagana 99 loans. For the next few years, the bank's financial standing gradually deteriorated.
In 1988, the Central bank of the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas issued Circular No. 1126 in 1988, designed to help recapitalize and revitalize distressed rural banks. In the case of Green Bank, it had arrears with the Bangko Sentral amounting to nearly fifteen million pesos, requiring it to recapitalize to cope with capital deficiency. Initially, stockholders refused, although some stockholders eventually agreed to aid the bank's recapitalization.
The bank merged with the Rural Bank of Alegria in 2000, becoming the largest rural bank in the Caraga region. It joined BancNet in 2006, being one of three banks that joined the interbank network.
The bank followed the Grameen Bank experimentation with conversion of borrowers from joint liability loans, to individual liability loans, with no drop in repayments.
