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Sister companies Globe Telecom and the Ayala Corp. got the green light from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for their entry in the financial industry. The approval of BSP creates for the two companies the opportunity to become the first mobile microfinance bank.

The new bank, which will be soon up and running, will be called the “BPI Globe Banko, A Savings Bank” and it will be using the license of Pilipinas Savings Bank. BPI senior vice president Teresita Tan said it will be launched this month. Tan was also named as the president of the new bank.

Based on the agreement of the companies, Globe will have 40 percent stake in the bank, while the Ayala Corp will be having 20 percent. The remaining 40 percent will be given to Bank of the Philippine Island (BPI), the main financial arm of the Ayala group.

According to Tan, the new bank would be nicknamed “Banko,” which means “my bank,” and announced that they will be opening their first branch in Greenhills soon. “We’re required by the BSP to have at least one satellite branch per region but this will really be a mobile bank,” she said.

Banko, who will be riding on Globe’s technology, will offer micro financing of P3,000 to P150,000; an SME (small and medium enterprise) facility of P150,000 to P500,000 loans; and a wholesale funding to microfinance-oriented non-government organizations (NGOs) worth between P500,000 to P80 million. The bank will be having coordinators who will offer its services.