Banks’ bad loans hit 6-month high in FebruaryData from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that the industry’s non-performing loan (NPL) ratio picked up to 3.33 percent in February from 3.31 percent in January, marking the highest in six months or since the 3.5 percent in August last year. In peso terms, bad loans increased by 7.9 percent to P553.68 billion in February from P513.35 billion a year earlier, partly cushioned by robust lending growth. “Slower growth in bank loans in recent months led to lower base or denominator effects that mathematically led to some pick up in banks’ NPL ratio,” he said. Past due loans or obligations unpaid but not yet classified as non-performing climbed by 12.2 percent to P715.66 billion from P637.81 billion. The industry’s NPL ratio has been below the 3.5-percent level since August last year as stable inflation and a series of interest rate cuts have boosted credit quality.

Source: Philippine Star April 09, 2026 16:38 UTC