Corporate News 2006

The Development Bank of the Philippines, the government-owned wholesale financial institution, cited Chinatrust as one of its valued partners of progress, particularly as the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Awardee in the commercial bank category.

Chinatrust loans processed for the purpose of livelihood, education, and health, among others, are eligible for the rediscounting window. “We are glad that our efforts to support the entrepreneurial spirit were recognized,” shared Martin Lee, executive vice president and Institutional Banking head, who was on hand to receive the award together with Chinatrust president Joey Bermudez. “The award just shows that we are doing the right thing and we should continue focusing on this underserved sector.” For 2006, Chinatrust is poised to increase its base of borrowers to maximize the facility that DBP has provided to further encourage entrepreneurs in their endeavors.

* Shown in photo during the awards are Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) senior vice president Teresa Jesudason; Chinatrust executive vice president and Institutional Banking Group Head Martin Lee; Chinatrust president Joey Bermudez; DBP president and CEO Reynaldo David, DBP Chairman Antonio Alindogan; and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco, Jr.

Chinatrust’s 2004 annual report entitled “Invest” was cited as one of the top ten annual reports of 2005 in the recently held Management Association of the Philippines Best Annual Report Awards. Moving toward the direction of good governance and disclosure, the annual report featured articles on management and compliance, as well as corporate social responsibility.

Management Association of the Philippines is an organization composed of 800 professionals and executives of the country’s top companies. Thirty seven organizations participated in the competition that has been running for three years, to further encourage Philippine corporations, particularly publicly-listed companies, to produce annual reports that are hinged on greater transparency, elevated disclosure practices, and user-friendliness and aesthetics that will encourage readers to learn more about the company.

Chinatrust elected its new set of board of directors in its recently held stockholders meeting last June 22, 2006.

The election of Board members comes after a thorough screening by the Bank’s Nomination and Review Committee, composed of incumbent directors tasked to determine the composition and effectiveness of the Board as well as evaluate the qualifications of nominees to the Board and Executive Management.

William Hon continues to be the Chairman after his election in April 28, 2006. He is joined by Vice Chairman William Go, directors Joey A. Bermudez, Eric Wu, Larry Hsu, as well as independent directors Edwin B. Villanueva and Yung Fang Yang.

WILLIAM HON, Canadian citizen, was initially elected to the Board on October 21, 2005. He is a graduate of L’Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales and holds a master’s degree from Concordia University. He is currently the Managing Director, Corporate Banking Division International of CTCB. He is also the Chief Country Officer of CTCB Hong Kong, and the Chief Representative of CTCB Representative Office in the Philippines.

WILLIAM B. GO, Filipino, received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of the East and Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Missouri. He holds the following key positions: Chairman of Investors’ Securities and Gama Enterprises Inc.; Chairman and President of Big Blue Realty Corporation; President of Serico, Inc.; and Director of Sunvar Realty Development Corporation and State Investment House. Mr. Go has been with Chinatrust since 1995 and has been President and a member of the Board of Directors until October 15, 2001 when he resigned as President, and subsequently elected as Vice-Chairman.

JOEY A. BERMUDEZ, Filipino, a Certified Public Accountant, obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce (Major in Accountancy) from the University of Santo Tomas and his Master’s Degree in Business Economics from the University of Asia and the Pacific. He assumed his functions as President and member of the Board of Directors on October 15, 2001.

ERIC WU, Taiwanese, a.k.a Hsin-Hao Wu, was appointed member of the Board effective December 21, 2004. He graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the National Taiwan University in 1986. He is currently a Senior Vice President of Chinatrust Commercial Bank (Taiwan).

LARRY HSU, Taiwanese, a.k.a. Hsu Chun-Jen, was appointed as director on April 28, 2006. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Business at the National Taiwan University School. Mr. Hsu is currently the Head of Capital Markets of Chinatrust Commercial Bank.

YUNG FANG YANG, Taiwanese, is one of the Bank’s two independent directors. He joined Chinatrust (Philippines) in 1999 and has been a member of the Board of Directors since then. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics/Mathematics from Tung-Hai University, Taiwan in 1979. He holds the position of president of KK Converter Philippines.

EDWIN B. VILLANUEVA, Filipino, joined as independent director of the Bank in 2002. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Engineering (cum laude) from Ateneo De Manila University and Master’s degree in Business Administration from Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds the following key positions: Chairman of VFL Advisors, Inc.; Senior Partner of Argosy Advisers, Inc.; President of ABV, Inc.; Director of Diversified Financial Network, Inc., the Philippine Dealing Systems Group, the Makati Supermart Group, Testech Inc., Datapax (Phil.), and PhilRatings, Inc.

We are done with the consolidation of our Binondo, Arranque, and Sta. Elena branches in a bigger, centrally located office known as Chinatrust Binondo Branch. Last May 15, valued clients of the three branches were invited to celebrate Holy Mass and share breakfast to mark the opening of the new site. Existing clients warmly welcomed the modern yet comfortable feel of the branch, and expressed gladness about the renewed commitment of the bank in giving them better services and facilities.

Following the opening of Binondo Branch, two branches in Makati opened in June, one in Leviste and another one in Rada. Both branches, which also boast of the franchise look similar to our parent bank and newly renovated and relocated branches, are aimed toward servicing the requirements of corporate clients and their executives, as well as the high net worth individuals residing in the vicinity.

Beginning October 13, clients who use their card to pay for their purchases get the chance to win P5,000 in the weekly draw of Chinatrust’s Swipe & Win Promo. It is the Bank’s way of encouraging its clients to maximize the features of their Chinatrust Visa Debit and ATM Card for point-of-sale purchases.

For a minimum single transaction worth P500, the cardholder is entitled to one electronically-generated raffle entry. Entries are generated on a weekly basis. For instance, eligible transactions from October 13 to 19, will form part of the October 20 draw; those generated from October 20 to 26, will be drawn on October 27. The more frequent the cardholder uses the card, the more chances of winning. The Swipe & Win Promo will run from October 13 to December 21, with the last draw to be held on December 22.

The promo is open to all clients who own the Classic, Gold, Blue Payroll, and Blue Salary Stretch cards. Employees of Chinatrust and their relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity and affinity are not qualified to join the promo.

Per DTI-NCR Permit No. 3848 Series of 2006.

October saw the opening of two new Chinatrust branches, bringing its network to twenty. Last October 16, the Bank opened in Angeles, Pampanga, targeting locators in the Clark Special Economic Zone as well as businesses engaged in manufacturing, trading, and service in the vicinity.

A few days later, the Bank marked its first venture in the Mindanao region with the opening of Davao Branch. The branch, strategically located at the busiest area of the Philippines’ most peaceful city, also boasts of a Public Loans satellite office to cater to the needs of Salary Stretch customers.

The BSP granted Chinatrust with licenses to open five new branches during the first quarter of 2006. Two more branches are set to open in Cebu before the end of the year – one in the downtown area and another one in Mandaue. Another branch will be opened in Metro Manila by early 2007.

Be one of the 10 monthly winners of P20,000 from August to November or the luckiest one to win P1 million in the grand draw in BancNet’s Pay Bills, Pay Back Promo!

Since Chinatrust is a BancNet member, owning a Chinatrust ATM card automatically makes you eligible for the promo. All you have to do is pay for your monthly bills via ATM, BancNet Online, or SMS banking. Successful transactions are each assigned a raffle entry.

Our 2005 Annual Report was once again included in the Management Association of the Philippines’ top annual reports. In the recently held 4th MAP Best Annual Report Awards, Chinatrust was among the fifteen that were cited, composed of publicly listed companies in the finance, telecoms, property development, and utilities businesses.

The project, which is a collaboration among the Management Association of the Philippines, the Philippine Stock Exchange, and BusinessWorld, is aimed at promoting the effective use of annual reports in communicating a company’s performance, paying particular focus on content, corporate governance disclosure, and visual appeal. “We have always wanted our Annual Report to be a meaningful and relevant document,” said Chinatrust president Joey Bermudez. “There is no better way to achieve this than to place ourselves in the same league as those who similarly take this task seriously.” Chinatrust views its annual report as an opportunity to create value for the organization, “Our Annual Report generously details our financial results and exhaustively informs our readers on the initiatives we have taken to improve the quality of our governance, make ourselves socially relevant and create lasting value for our stakeholders.”

This is the second citation given by MAP to Chinatrust, the first one for its 2004 annual report.

In its letter to Chinatrust president Joey Bermudez, the Bureau of Treasury cited Chinatrust as the 9th Best Performing Government Securities Eligible Dealer in the Primary Market for the period of October 2005 to September 2006. "This should make us very proud because in this business, we compete with the top domestic commercial banks and the biggest global players who have a Philippine presence," said Mr. Bermudez.

In its third quarter disclosure to the PSE, the Bank reported a 31% increase in net income for the first three quarters of the year ending September 30, 2006, with its Treasury Desk’s trading gains soaring to P393 million from P170 million in the past year.

Chinatrust was also recognized as one of the top 10 GSEDs in the periods ending September 2003 and 2004.