PNB-Tokyo: 5 years and going strong

PNB Tokyo Branch has a lot to celebrate for in its fifth year of banking operation in Japan.

At a time when other foreign banks are closing shop in recession-hit Japan, PNB-Tokyo has actually declared a profit this year.

Surprisingly, this has consistently been the case ten months after it started operating as a full bank in June 1996.

Starting with seven personnel in a cramped office in Shibuya, near the old Philippine Embassy in Nampeidaicho, PNB-Tokyo has since moved three times because of expansion requirements and now employs 29 personnel in its sprawling office space in Toranomon.

Under the leadership of Isabelita T. Manalastas, PNB-Tokyo has become the No. 1 overseas branch office in terms of profitability, shoving PNB-New York and PNB-Hongkong from the top position.

The bank management has overturned all common expectations. In expensive Tokyo, it has achieved the highest cost efficiency, for instance by taking only one-seventh the input of PNB-Hongkong for the same output.

That is why, even if PNB-Hongkong has by far a higher volume of remittance and a higher number of transactions, PNB-Tokyo has a bigger net profit.

Manalastas describes the first five years of the bank as "learning the ropes," including pulsing the market and studying regulations. As one of the only two Philippine banks granted license by the Japanese government, "we have to be careful about full regulatory compliance." Luckily, she was guided by a well-experienced banker who is also her right-hand man, Keisuke Iwanami.

Interestingly, for a new player in the market, it set an industry precedent by operating in the black in record eight months. In the same period, it has developed a whole array of products other than remittances, its mainstay. One may now open yen, peso and dollar accounts at the bank, with a choice of savings, time and checking accounts. PNB-Tokyo also undertakes trade financing and offers housing and personal loans.

What's in store for PNB-Tokyo in the next five years? The indefatigable Manalastas quickly replies, "The next stage is marketing. And of course, new products. Watch for our next annoucement."

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