The Union Bank of the Philippines is in the process of acquiring more banks this year, according to its chief executive Edwin Bautista.
He revealed that Union Bank is having discussions with a couple of banks and that the bank will continue to focus on expanding its digital presence.
According to Edwin Bautista, Union Bank is waiting for approval from the central bank for one of the acquisitions, while negotiations are ongoing for another.
Recently, Union Bank also became the first bank in the Philippines to establish a smart branch that leverages world-class 5G technology for undisrupted and high-speed connectivity with IoT-enabled services.
For the launch of the new smart branch at Dasmarinas, Philippines, Union Bank has partnered with Globe Business, the enterprise arm of Globe Telecom. The bank deploys 5G connectivity at the branch for faster speeds, higher bandwidth, and a more stable internet connection.
Globe Business senior vice president Peter Maquera told the media, “5G is an important building block to help companies remain competitive in the digital age. This is the reason we are accelerating our efforts to deploy 5G, so we can provide more Filipino companies like Union Bank the chance to go beyond what the current technology allows them to do.”
In a bid to drive financial inclusion in the country, Union Bank launched a payment focused stablecoin last year. According to media reports, the bank-backed cryptocurrency called PHX, is being implemented on Union Bank’s i2i platform.
According to UnionBank’s senior vice president Arvie de Vera, the stablecoin resolves reconciliation issues and eases audit and compliance issues. The currency is available to i2i network participants and it can be purchased directly from their Union Bank accounts.