The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) continues to expand its reach in the small business segment, building on its position as one of the leading banks in the Philippines with one of the largest small business loan portfolios. The business banking leadership team—Dominique “Ococ” Ocliasa, head of business banking, and Maricris San Diego, marketing, systems, products and campaigns division head of business banking— discussed how BPI is reshaping its strategy to better serve this critical segment of the economy. Reframing small business banking as a portfolio-based model BPI holds a $1.77 billion (about P100 billion) micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) loan book, representing one of the largest small business lending portfolios in the country. Yet, as Ocliasa clarified, the total exposure may also include portfolios housed under institutional/commercial banking, as well as the bank's subsidiary, BPI BanKo. To better serve this market, BPI made a deliberate decision three years ago to carve out of Business Banking the large SMEs to instead form part of commercial banking. “With a sharper focus on smaller SMEs, Business Banking now engages the market as a matter of portfolio,” said Ocliasa. “Our products follow a packaged approach—offering set terms and features designed for simplicity and speed. There is some elbow room in terms of rates and packaging, but not at the expense of turnaround time.” Digital transformation and five-minute loan approvals In response to growing small business demand and resource constraints, BPI invested heavily in digitalisation. Internal analytics and credit underwriting teams generate pre-qualified leads for branches to engage, with final closing handled by dedicated “hunters” from the distribution team. “For pre-qualified clients, intra-day loan approval within minutes is really more of a perfunctory administrative process—after all, the credit wherewithal has been pre-determined,” explained Ocliasa. These lists are generated through a collaboration between data analytics and the customer campaigns unit led by San Diego. Beyond banking: capacity building and community building BPI’s Ka-Negosyo capacity building programme exemplifies its broader approach to small business development. “We go around the Philippines, especially in areas where small business communities are growing,” said San Diego. The programme includes face-to-face learning sessions on topics like taxation, inventory, marketing, and financial planning. “Most of them never went through business school and are just focused on their product or craft,” added San Diego. BPI supplements this with online educational content and networking events under its BizTalks, Ka-Nego Talks and Ka-Negosyo initiatives, segmented by geography, industry, association, or even gender. “We have even done gender-specific engagements for women entrepreneurs,” said San Diego. A standout collaboration is with Taxumo, a digital tax filing service that initially provided content but now collaborates with BPI to reach SMEs through its platform. “As part of our partnership, Taxumo refers SME users from its platform to BPI for business financing and loan support,” Ocliasa shared. Digital ecosystem: platforms and channel strategy BPI’s small business customers access services through BizKo and BizLink, digital platforms for seamless and easy cash management. BizLink supports more structured, B2B-type transactions, while BizKo is being revamped to serve smaller, solo entrepreneurs. About 20% to 25% of small business customers are active digital users, mostly for payroll, supplier payments, government fees and utility transactions. Another key initiative is Ka-Negosyo on the Go (KNOTG), a digital loan application platform that enables SMEs to access loan solutions through a quick response (QR)-driven eligibility checker and a fully digital loan application. “We are one of the few with a full-fledged digital loan application process that doesn’t require downloads or physical visits,” said San Diego. This high-tech approach is supported by high-touch engagements which include the support of our frontliners throughout the application journey, partnerships with SME communities, events, and social media and online educational videos, leading them to KNOTG. Credit discipline and market leadership BPI reports a non-performing loan (NPL) rate of around 6-7% for small businesses—substantially better than the 12–13% industry average. “We are very prudent with write-offs,” said Ocliasa. “Our risk office watches us closely, and we maintain our own collection and remediation units.” BPI estimates it holds around 10% market share among universal and commercial banks in small business lending, placing it among the top players nationally. Serving underserved and rural segments BPI is expanding its Ka-Negosyo capacity building programme to Tier 3 and 4 municipalities and works with the Department of Trade and Industry, local government agencies and various organisations to support local outreach. “We aspire to reach all SMEs across the country,” said San Diego. “As branches expand, so do our hunters.” BPI collaborates with international development organisations such as the International Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank and United Nations Global Compact Network Philippines for the bank's financial education initiatives and sustainability agenda. It also works with the Philippine Guarantee Corporation to enable partial risk sharing on certain loan types. Innovation through ecosystem financing and digital channels Supply chain and receivables financing are existing product offerings from BPI’s transaction banking group, and Ocliasa highlighted efforts to complement these offerings through ecosystem-based lending for small businesses. “We are developing a loan programme based on collections throughput running on the bank’s digital platforms,” he said, referencing efforts to analyse person-to-merchant transactions for creditworthiness. BPI is also piloting small business support through partnerships with e-commerce platforms and is exploring a programme specifically tailored to startups. “We recognise that even if they are small, they have the potential to grow into viable businesses,” said San Diego. As the Philippine small business sector evolves, BPI is positioning itself not only as a lender but as an enabler of sustainable business growth. With a blend of digital efficiency, physical network strength, and customer-centred programming, the bank’s business banking unit is creating an ecosystem where small businesses can grow, scale, and thrive. “We are not just talking about loans anymore,” said Ocliasa. “We are talking about helping them compete, connect, and succeed in the broader economy.”
