BDO Unibank Inc. raised P55.7 billion from its recent bond issuance, as retail and institutional investors swarmed the bank's third foray into the ASEAN sustainability bond market.

The amount was more than 11 times oversubscribed from the original size of P5 billion. The offer period was shortened by three days amid the rapid buildup in orders from retail and institutional investors.

The 1.5-year peso-denominated sustainability bonds, with a coupon rate of 6.325 percent, were listed on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. (PDEx) yesterday.

ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch served as sole arranger and sustainability coordinator, while BDO and ING acted as selling agents. BDO Capital and Investment Corp. was the financial advisor for the issuance.

'The net proceeds of the issuance are intended to finance and/or refinance eligible assets as defined in the bank's Sustainable Finance Framework and diversify the bank's funding sources,' BDO said.

The bank continues to tap the debt market depending on market demand. It has a P365-billion program in place, allowing it to offer peso-denominated securities from time to time as it deems necessary.

In January, BDO raised a record P63.3 billion from its second bond issuance of ASEAN sustainability bonds, almost 12.7 times higher than the original size of P5 billion. The 1.5-year notes carry a coupon of 6.025 percent per annum.

The Sy-led bank also successfully raised P52.7 billion in January 2022 via the maiden issuance of the peso-denominated ASEAN sustainability bonds.

BDO, the largest bank in terms of total assets, loans, deposits and trust funds under management, has over 1,700 consolidated operating branches and more than 5,500 ATMs nationwide.

It also has 16 international offices, including full-service branches in Asia, Europe, North America and the Middle East.

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