and other properties owned or acquired ( ropoa ) s to various jvas with real estate developers. at present, ropoa still accounts to 46. 0 percent of the banking system ’ s overall level of npas. at present, there are 4 microfinance - oriented rural banks and 158 rural banks engaged in some level of microfinance with a total loan portfolio of p2. 3 billion catering to a total of 441, 963 borrowers. recently allowed the selective 6 lifting of moratorium on bank branching to facilitate the expansion of financial services in underserved areas. under circular no. 505, we foresee, among others ; the growth of bank microfinancing to benefit rural folks with greater access to formal banking services that in turn, mobilizes savings and investments. moreover, we foresee an accelerated consolidation process in the banking industry in the next 3 years. this will be brought about by ( 1 ) a stronger regulatory framework that will hasten the exit of weak banks, hopefully on a voluntary and market - based basis ; ( 2 ) the increasingly stronger competition by new foreign investors coming in, in existing banks ; and ( 3 ) the rigorous technical demands posed by modern banking and finance standards. all these changes will dramatically transform the competitive environment. down the road, we see a banking landscape characterized by a handful of main banks complemented by an abundance of smaller banks that serve various well defined market niches. final note in closing, let me call on this generation of the family behind rang - ay bank to transform these reform initiatives into opportunities and further stretch your vision over the next years to come. with your wealth of experience, rang - ay can lead in turning the heavy flywheel of remaining reforms for the rural banking industry. i trust that rang - ay will harness its core expertise, geographic advantage and strong ties with the community in promoting a safe, sound and responsive banking system. let us all work together in keeping the wheels of change turning. agyamannak ( thank you ) and happy anniversary! prohibition on bank branching remains in the cities of makati, mandaluyong, manila, paranaque, pasay, pasig and quezon including the municipality of san juan.

amando m tetangco, jr : turning challenges into opportunities speech by mr amando m tetangco, jr, governor of the central bank of the philippines, during the 50th anniversary celebratory luncheon of rang - ay rural bank, inc. ( rang - ay bank ), sevilla, san fernando city, la union, 14 january 2006. * * * governor victor ortega and mayor mary jane ortega, officers and staff of rang - ay bank led by chairperson eufrosina nisce and rang - ay president ives nisce, co - workers in the banking sector and colleagues from the government sector, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen : naimbag nga malem ‘ yo amin ( good afternoon )! i am indeed honored to be among the witnesses of this momentous occasion. thank you for this privilege of being with you in celebrating your 50th anniversary. today, we all are witnesses to the realization of your founders ’ vision 50 years ago. and it is certainly one exhilarating experience. this feat has significant impact to the banking industry and most especially to the community that rang - ay has been serving for half a century. thus, i also take this opportunity, to express bangko sentral ’ s appreciation to the entire family of rang - ay, particularly for being consistently in congruence with all our policy and regulatory reform initiatives all these years. rang - ay at 50 rang - ay bank has undoubtedly lived up to its name. it has been bringing progress or should i say “ karangyaan ” to the community it serves from the first moment it opened its doors as a pioneer private bank in san fernando, la union on january 16, 1956. today, you understandably have the right to be proud of your accomplishments. the last time we looked, you are still this region ’ s number one bank and among the top 25 rural banks nationwide in terms of both physical and financial resources. your strong presence in region 1 as well as in the nearby cordillera region is made possible by your network of ten branches ( including that of a former affiliate - rb of burgos ). you continue to enjoy the trust and confidence of over 15, 000 depositors 1 whose savings are now close to half a billion. likewise, you have a relatively strong capitalization of 120 million. rang - ay ’ s risk - based capital adequacy ratio ( car ) of 18. 5 percent is