About Plantersbank The Bank for SMEs

Planters Development Bank (Plantersbank) is a privately-owned and managed bank with a complete range of commercial banking products and services especially geared towards promoting the interest of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

For the past four decades, Plantersbank has devoted its organization and resources to the service of the Filipino entrepreneur and will continue to champion the cause of SMEs by bringing to them the resources needed in this period of accelerated change and global competition.

Plantersbank is…

  • The country’s largest private development Bank with total assets of over P50 Billion, capital of of P3.9 Billion and a nationwide network of 75 branches.
  • Nationally acclaimed as the lead SME Bank for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
  • One of the top 500 in the country’s top 1,000 corporations
  • Provider of global expertise and resources through partnerships with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) and Asian Development Bank (ADB)
  • Consistent recipient of awards and citations for SME finance and development, including the first-ever President’s Citation for MSME Development in 2009 and the 2008 Outstanding SME Development Project Award in Asia-Pacific for the Plantersbank SME Business Park.
  • Gateway for SMEs into the Internet through the joint venture company with International Finance Corporation (IFC) – PDB SME Solutions, Inc. (sme.com.ph), winner of the 2001 Asian Banking Award for e-commerce service.

Awards & Citations

The Bank has been honored with several awards and citations through out the years. Awards received from 2005 to the present are listed here:

From the President of the Philippines

  • Presidential Citation for MSME Development, the first such award conferred during the 2009 MSME Development Week by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, in recognition of Plantersbank’s Best Practices in providing access to finance.

From Asian Bankers Association

  • 2005 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award conferred on Plantersbank chairman Ambassador Jesus P. Tambunting for contribution in defining a market-driven, sustainable and profitable model of SME-oriented banking
  • Most Outstanding Marketing, PR and Brand Management for Plantersbank’s For the Entrepreneur, For the Filipino SME Advocacy Campaign
  • 2005 Asian Banking Award in Human Resource Management for Spirituality at Work

More awards and citations

Our Milestones

December. Shareholders led by Jesus P. Tambunting assume control and ownership of the Bulacan Development Bank.
1972

1976
September. Bulacan Development Bank is renamed Planters Development Bank.

January. Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) invests in Plantersbank, marking the first-ever investment in a Philippine private development bank by a foreign institution.
1983

1987
June. Direct equity investment by Asian Development Bank in Plantersbank makes Philippine banking history.

March. Plantersbank elevated to the Hall of Fame by Development Bank of the Philippines for role in SME lending.
1999

1999
September. Kookmin Bank and Korea Development Leasing Corporation become Plantersbank shareholders following merger with Planters DB Leasing Corporation.

June. International Finance Corporation, the investment arm of the World Bank, launches its first Internet venture with Plantersbank called PlantersbankeCommerce.com which is part of the US$25.5 million equity investment, loan and technical assistance package extended by IFC.
2000

2002
July. Acquisition of Active Bank to add 31 more branches.

October. Acquisition of the Region Bank to add 11 more branches.
2003

2004
December. German investment and Development Company (DEG), the German government’s major development arm, subscribes to Plantersbank’s Tier II capital note issue.

September. Plantersbank becomes the 13th and only Philippine member bank of the Group of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Financial Institutions Dealing with SME’s.
2005

2007
July. Inauguration of the country’s first Industrial Park for SMEs in Naga, Cebu. The project is aimed at helping SMEs boost their business productivity, ensure efficient transactions and met the growing demands of both local and foreign arkets while enjoying special economic zone incentives.

April. Introduces the SME Speaker Series whereby motivational speakers are toured in key areas of the country to share their knowledge and equip entrepreneurs with latest management trends and impart valuable tips and inspiring lessons on how to better manage one’s enterprise.
2008

2009
Plantersbank was chosen by Shorebank International, a leading SME and Community Development Bank in the US as subject of their study on success drivers of globally acclaimed high-performing small business financial institutions.

November. The Bank launches the SME Center for Asia to integrate the Bank’s advocacy and enabling initiatives for entrepreneurs. The SME Center for Asia is an information hub where entrepreneurs can meet, do research and interact with fellow SMEs and industry experts and hosts a library, online terminal and conference area.
2010

2011
Plantersbank strengthens its commitment to pursue triple bottomline banking by becoming a member of the Philippine Business for the Environment (PBE), a voluntary network of companies adhering to the principle of sustainable development.

July. Plantersbank hosts the 9th Annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Financial Institutions Dealing with SME (APEC-SME). The Bank is the lone Philippine representative to the APEC SME and thus bears the singular honor of carrying the country’s flag.
2012