Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 10) — The proposed merger of LandBank and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) is seen to be done by the first semester of next year, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said.
During his chat with media over the weekend, Diokno said the planned merger would still have to undergo a process, with the central bank’s approval expected before yearend.
“So around middle of next year ang full completion, that’s a reasonable timetable. By first half of the year,” he said.
The draft executive order has already been forwarded to the Palace, the finance chief noted.
Late in March, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave the green light for the proposed merger of the two state-run lenders following the previous developments in the global banking sector.
Diokno earlier said this would pave the way for the creation of the “biggest bank of the country.”
“There’s a strong need to solidify the government bank. We’re not saying that DBP or LandBank has problems… but as policymakers, we need to seek better ways of doing things, especially if we want to improve the performance of particular government agencies,” Diokno said at that time.
