PHStocks Spotlight: Bankard Inc. (BKD)

For the next few days, we will put the spotlight on some of the 2013 top stock performers at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), based on compiled data by PHStocks.

To kick off the series, we will start with the biggest stock price gainer for the year 2013: Bankard Inc. (PSE: BKD). Here’s a bit of a background for the company (Source: PSE).

Initially named Philippine Commercial Credit Card Inc. (PCCCI), Bankard was organized as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Philippine Commercial International Bank (PCIBank) on 4 December 1981. The company was set up for the purpose of operating a domestic credit card business. In June 1991, PCCI managed and operated PCIBank’s Mastercard international credit card operations through a memorandum of agreement. PCCI changed its name to Bankard on 8 July 1992.

In 2007, Bankard changed the nature of its business from a full credit card business of issuing cards and merchant acquiring, to that of credit card servicing. With the company’s services agreement with Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (PSE: RCB) signed in 2001, Bankard’s primary customer now is RCB and indirectly the RCBC Bankard cardholders, to whom the cards are issued, and its accredited merchants. As a servicing entity, the company provides RCB marketing, selling and distribution assistance, technical, collection services and all transaction processing requirements arising from its credit cardholder and merchant transactions. Specifically, Bankard provides the end-to-end business and transaction processes primarily to the RCB credit card business.

In October 2009, Bankard signed an agreement with China Union Pay Co. Ltd (CUP) to acquire card transactions of CUP issued cards done through Bankard-accredited merchants. In 2012, BKD expanded its transaction acquiring business by deploying Point-of-Sale terminals to acquire transactions of both credit cards and debit cards.

2013: The Year That Was

Bankard closed the year 2012 with a stock price of PhP0.70 – basically opening the first trading day of 2013 (2 January) at PhP0.70. From then on, it rallied to reach PhP1.03 in 8 February; PhP1.42 in 7 March; PhP1.51 in 4 April; before going down to PhP0.95 in 25 June. Perhaps, this may also be due to the period created by US Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s comments that the bank is contemplating starting the tapering of the QE programme – a period that saw foreign investors starting to take their funds away from emerging markets such as the Philippines.

On 21 October, BKD hit a high of PhP2.17 intraday, before closing at PhP1.88. It went on to reach PhP2.25 in 8 November, before closing at PhP1.95 in 27 December, the last trading day of 2013.

Source: PSE

From PhP0.70 at the end of 2012 to PhP1.95 at the end of 2013: a whopping 178.57% growth that placed the company at the top of the best stock performers in 2013.

Highlights

1Q 2013

• Net Profit (January-March 2013): PhP27.1 million
• Total Comprehensive income (January-March 2013): PhP27 million
• Cash dividend of PhP0.07 per share, paid on 28 Jun 2013

2Q 2013

• Net Profit (April-June 2013): PhP39.49 million
• Total Comprehensive income (April-June 2013): PhP39.61 million

October 2013

The Board of Directors of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (PSE: RCB) approved the sale to Philippine Business Bank Trust and Investment Center on behalf of various clients, the Bank’s and its subsidiary RCBC Capital’s 89% stake in Bankard. As part of the condition for the sale, all existing credit card operations of Bankard will be assigned and absorbed, directly or indirectly, by RCBC, thru itself or a subsidiary or affiliate. RCBC expects to continue to operate the current credit card-related business of Bankard. No disruption on operations is expected from the transaction.

December 2013

• Sale of all or substantially all the assets and liabilities of Bankard to Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (PSE: RCB) and RCBC Bankard Services Corp.
• Bankard will change its company name to Bright Kindle Resources and Investments Inc.
• Primary purpose of business: to acquire by purchase, exchange, assignment, gift or otherwise, and to hold, own, and use for investment or otherwise, and to sell, assign, transfer, exchange, lease, let, develop, mortgage, pledge, deal in and with and otherwise operate, enjoy and dispose of, any and all properties of every kind and description and wherever situated, as and to the extent permitted by law, including, but not limited to, bonds, debentures, promissory notes, shares of capital stock, or other securities and obligations, created, negotiated or issued by any corporation, association, or other entity, foreign or domestic and while the owner, holder, or possessor thereof, to exercise all the rights, powers, and privileges of ownership or any other interest therein, including the right to receive, collect and dispose of, any and all dividends, interests and income, derived therefrom, and the right to vote on any proprietary or other interest, on any shares of the capital stock, and upon any bonds, debentures, or other securities, having voting power, so owned or held, without however engaging in the business of an investment company under the Investment Company Act or a finance company or a broker or dealer in securities or stocks.

Watch out for the next PHStocks Spotlight.