Leading Philippine lender BDO Unibank has sealed a deal to bring in a unit of Singapore-based private equity firm Archipelago Capital Partners Pte. Ltd. as a strategic investor in its Davao-based rural bank subsidiary One Network Bank Inc. (ONB).
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, BDO said it had consummated the agreement to sell a 15-percent stake in the country’s biggest rural bank to Archipelago unit Osmanthus Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd.
Ahead of the closing of this deal, Osmanthus has been helping ONB develop the framework for its micro, small and medium enterprise lending business, leading to the establishment of the initial pilot test sites by end-2017.
BDO said it expected the partnership with Osmanthus to further strengthen ONB’s strategic foothold in the microfinance business, thus contributing to financial inclusion.
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As a private equity firm, Archipelago Capital focuses on growth opportunities and high-potential small and middle market businesses, especially in the consumer, financial services and niche industrial sectors, in Southeast Asia. Its investment philosophy is centered on “active” ownership, with value driven through “creativity in strategy and excellence in execution in all its investments.”
BDO retained an 85-percent ownership at ONB, thus providing continued financial and operational synergies to the rural bank. It earlier shelved a deal to sell a 40-percent stake in ONB to a unit of US-based global private investment firm TPG as the funding commitment was delayed.
