ASSETS of the Philippine banking sector as of end-April totaled P30.12 trillion, up by 11.9 percent from P26.9 trillion last year, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Bank assets consist of deposits, loans and investments, including cash, amounts due from other banks, interbank loans receivable (IBL) and reverse repurchase (RRP) arrangements, adjusted for allowances for credit losses.
Though total assets month on month were lower than March’s P30.33 trillion, the slight dip is more of a “technical pullback than a concern,” said Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at audit firm Reyes Tacandong & Co.
“After the usual quarter-end buildup in March, banks tend to rebalance as liquidity normalizes, government deposits are drawn down, and market valuations adjust,” Ravelas said.
Aggregate loan portfolio, inclusive of IBL and RRP, was P16.67 trillion, higher than the year-earlier P14.8 trillion, but lower than P16.74 trillion a month earlier.
Net investments, including financial assets and equity investments in subsidiaries, rose to P8.67 trillion from P8.03 trillion a year earlier, but lower than the P8.94 trillion a month earlier.
Cash and amounts due from banks dropped to P2.2 trillion from P1.91 trillion and P1.98 trillion last year and a month earlier, respectively.
The value of net real and other properties acquired grew to P142.97 billion from P140.34 billion in March and P119.87 billion in April 2025.
Other assets totaled P2.43 trillion, higher than the P1.98 trillion a year earlier.
Total liabilities climbed to P26.49 trillion from P23.41 trillion in April 2025, but was lower than the P26.72 trillion a month earlier.
“Looking ahead, we expect bank assets to continue expanding at a healthy pace, driven by lending to infrastructure, businesses and consumers, as inflation eases and rates eventually [go] down,” Ravelas said.
“The bottom line: short-term fluctuations are normal, but the trend is clearly upward — and that’s a good signal for the economy.”
