Philippines private wealth management AUM growth surpasses 25%

With the Philippine economy ending on a high note in 2023, becoming the fastest-growing economy in Southeast Asia, private banks in the region grew their combined AUM by 25% to US$58 billion, accelerating growth from the 2% increase in 2022.

According to APB Insights’ 2023 Philippines Private Banking & Wealth Management AUM League Tables, almost all top players in the region’s wealth management industry recorded a double-digit growth in wealth assets.

Most private banks owed their growth to increased investment products and volume, stronger digital capabilities that led to optimal client management, and enhanced family-based solutions.

Banks seeing significant growth in 2023 include Bank of the Philippine Islands and Metrobank Private Wealth, whose AUM rose 40% to US$22 billion and 51% to US$8 billion, respectively. Security Bank, despite starting on a smaller base of less than US$2 billion, grew its AUM by 44% to US$2.7 billion in 2023.

Enhanced investment products

Despite clients in the Philippines being accustomed to holding plain vanilla investments, private banks in the region have been laying out more sophisticated products and encouraging clients to invest in such products to enhance returns, which in turn contributed to the banks’ AUM growth.

UnionBank Private Banking introduced clients to structured products to enhance the yield of their holdings, while taking factors such as credit, liquidity, and other related risks into consideration. With similar visions in mind, Security Bank launched alternative investment products for its private banking customers.

Philippine National Bank attributed its AUM growth to the increased volume of investments. RCBC Wealth Management owed its AUM growth to its collaboration with trust investment group SunLife Grepa Financial.

Leveraging technology and data

To optimise client management and expansion strategies, Philippine private banks have been using digital tools to facilitate growth.

Philippine National Bank digitalised its wealth management division through the launch of its online relationship manager system and customer portal, while Metrobank Private Wealth offered data, research, and investment ideas to HNWIs and UHNWIs through its Wealth Insights website.

With enhanced digital capabilities, Metrobank has also been leveraging the data generated by the digitisation process and adopted a data-driven client acquisition approach.

Legacy planning services

While the need for family-based wealth management and services in legacy planning has existed in previous years, private banks have been further enhancing their family-based capabilities in 2023, especially in the area of generational wealth transfer, in addition to traditional areas of wealth structuring, family governance, and investment management.

UnionBank has been engaging clients through its NextGen Academy to prepare emerging leaders in family businesses, while Bank of the Philippine Islands and Chinabank have been providing clients with wealth planner teams to address issues within family governance and legacy planning.

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More	Rank			Bank Name	Bank type	2023 AUM (USD B)	2022 AUM (USD B)	YoY % Change	Min Asset Threshold (USD)
				Bank of the Philippine Islands	Wealth management	21.93	15.7	39.68%	N/A
	In 2023, Bank of the Philippine Islands announced its record-breaking wealth AUM. The bank attributed the increase to organic growth in its four key client segments – institutional, high net worth, mass affluent, and retail segments, as well as marketing and acquisition initiatives. On top of that, the bank’s wealth management unit has been focusing on its multi-family office solutions, providing clients with access to a team of wealth planners to address issues in family governance, investment management and legal advisory. Looking forward, the bank is confident in maintaining its growth momentum and achieving AUM growth of 15% to 20% in 2024. *Note: AUM: publicly reported Maria Theresa Marcial President and CEO of BPI Wealth
				BDO Private Bank	Private banking	12.15	11.71	3.76%	200K
	In 2023, BDO Private Bank saw high inflation and interest rates creating uncertainty in the environment, driving investors to shift to higher-yielding, short-term alternatives, including time deposit placements and treasury bills through investment management accounts. With the above in effect, pooled funds as well as domestic and global equity funds became less attractive investment outlets to BDO clients. As for technology, the private bank launched a client portal allowing the online viewing and accessing of statements, portfolio positions, and valuations. *Note: AUM: provided by the bank Albert Yeo head of private banking
				Metrobank Private Wealth	Wealth management	8.31	5.5	51.09%	2M
	While Metrobank’s private wealth division caters to UHNW clients, the bank reported a 51% AUM growth in dollar terms in 2023, after the bank took up a data-driven approach to client acquisitions and collaborated with other branches within the bank. As for technology, the bank will implement the Temenos Wealth Suite into its wealth management services while offering data, research, and investment ideas to both HNWIs and UHNWIs through its Wealth Insights website. *Note: AUM: publicly reported Lizette Perez head of private wealth
				RCBC Wealth Management	Wealth management	4.85	4.18	16.00%	200K
	In 2023, RCBC Wealth Management collaborated with the bank’s trust investment group and subsidiary SunLife Grepa Financial, which resulted in its AUM growth of 16% and income rise of 14%. The bank also adopted a member referral program and collaborated with its retail banking arm, which resulted in a 9% expansion in its client base and opened opportunities to tap into the affluent and high net worth clients of retail branches. *Note: AUM: publicly reported Jane N. Mañago head of wealth management group
				Philippine National Bank	Trust banking and WM	3.02	2.74	10.22%	18K
	Philippine National Bank attributed its trust banking AUM growth to the increase in the volume of investment management accounts and corporate fiduciary accounts. As for its wealth management group, the bank has been focusing on the digitalisation of the division by launching its Relationship Manager System to optimise client management and acquisition strategies. For the remainder of the year, the bank plans to further solidify its digital structure by launching its customer portal and completing the implementation of its wealth management system. *Note: AUM: publicly reported Maria Teresa Velasco head of wealth management group
				Security Bank	Trust banking and WM	2.68	1.86	44.00%	N/A
	In the past year, Security Bank has been expanding its branch network, with new branches featuring private spaces for its wealth clients. It also launched alternative investment products for wealth customers to diversify and maximise returns. Looking forward, the bank plans to launch a new wealth management system to transform the end-to-end customer journey for investments, simplify and streamline processes, and equip front-line staff with the information they need to address clients' financial needs. The bank also plans to hire additional wealth managers to cater to new clients and deepen client penetration. *Note: AUM: APB estimate Binky Mirabueno head of wealth management
				ChinaBank	Wealth management	2.62	2.37	10.55%	90K
	While the bank’s wealth management AUM grew by 16% in pesos and 11% in dollars, its wealth management clients grew by 8%. In the past year, Chinabank adopted a needs-based strategy to focus on customising wealth management and integrated banking services for the needs of its affluent and high net worth clients. The bank hopes to enhance, preserve, and help distribute its clients' wealth to the next generation. In addition, the bank has also been holding wealth forums around the year to engage clients. *Note: AUM: publicly reported Angela Cruz head of wealth management group
				UnionBank Private Banking	Private banking	2.50	1.96	26.94%	450K
	To address clients’ family needs, UnionBank Private Banking has been offering services on family wealth structuring, succession planning, and business transition. The bank is also engaging clients through its NextGen Academy to empower emerging leaders in family businesses. In addition, the private bank provides clients with structured products to enhance the yield of their plain vanilla investment holdings while considering credit, liquidity, and other related risks. *Note: AUM: APB estimate Arlene Agustin private banking head
				Total		58.05	46.02	26.15%

Methodology

Some banks publicly state their regional AUM totals, others don’t. Therefore, the datasets presented here contain a mix of estimates, shared, and reported figures. We also recognise that banks are inconsistent in the way they count AUM. And their minimum investment requirements can range widely, starting from as little as US$18,000 and going up to as high as US$2 million.

Totals may include assets under custody and/or loans, and may be distorted by double-counting. Where possible, we footnote for or provide some guidance on these variables. However, in the absence of enforced or agreed-upon standardisation and transparency, these inconsistencies will continue to undermine our ability to directly compare banks’ AUM.

Mid-market rates used as at 31 Dec 2023 for their respective years for non-USD reporting. For 2023: PHP-USD 0.017976