Assets managed by Philippine banks' trust units surged by more than 41% year on year to their highest level so far as of end-June, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The industry's trust assets reached P6.648 trillion as of June, ballooning by 41.21% from P4.708 trillion at end-June 2025. The total was also 0.93% higher than the previous all-time high of P6.586 trillion recorded as of end-March.

"The faster, double-digit growth could be largely attributed to increased financial literacy of Filipinos, especially on trust investment products, especially UITFs (unit investment trust funds) and other trust funds managed by fund managers or professionals with proven track records," Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

He added that the wide variety and accessibility of fund management products likewise spurred the growth of banks' trust assets during the period. According to Mr. Ricafort, these products, managed by established trust entities, help customers better manage risks while diversifying their investments locally and globally to optimize potential returns that are usually higher than those from traditional bank offerings like deposits.

The UITFs Mr. Ricafort cited are pooled investment funds introduced under BSP rules in 2006, when they replaced the older common trust fund scheme. They combine money from many investors into a single portfolio invested in instruments such as government securities, money market placements, bonds and equities. Unlike bank deposits, which earn fixed interest and are covered by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. for up to P500,000 per depositor per bank, UITF units carry no guaranteed return, as their value moves with the prices of the underlying investments.

A trust business covers activities performed under a trustor-trustee arrangement, in which a trustee manages funds or properties for the benefit of the trustor. Banks or nonbank financial institutions may operate trust units, and industry assets are made up of security investments, bank deposits, and other holdings. Trust and other fiduciary activities are regulated businesses, with the BSP setting the rules on how trustees may invest and account for the funds entrusted to them.

Breakdown by Bank Type

Universal and commercial banks held P6.622 trillion of the sector's trust assets, surging by 41.46% year on year from P4.681 trillion. Thrift banks, meanwhile, had trust assets worth P25.253 billion, 3.52% lower than the P26.175 billion seen a year ago. That left universal and commercial banks with more than 99% of all industry trust assets, underscoring how concentrated the business is among the country's biggest lenders.

Based on central bank data, net deposits in banks' trust units jumped by 21.68% to P1.414 trillion from P1.162 trillion a year prior. Net financial assets also inched up by 4.2% to P2.948 trillion from P2.829 trillion the previous year.

Trust units held no cash and due from banks as of end-June, versus P650 million in the same period last year. Net loans edged up by 1.74% to P45.659 billion from P44.88 billion a year earlier.

Trust Accountabilities

BSP data also showed that total accountabilities amounted to P6.648 trillion as of the first half, jumping by 41.21% from the P4.708 trillion recorded a year ago.

Broken down, trust accountabilities climbed by 8.07% year on year to P1.802 trillion from P1.667 trillion, with UITFs up by 5.95% to P707.050 billion. Employee benefits likewise rose by 7.31% annually to P392.781 billion, while pre-need increased by 9.46% to P109.845 billion.

Agency trusts under total accountabilities also went up by 9.85% to P2.427 trillion from P2.21 trillion. Other fiduciary services, on the other hand, more than tripled, soaring by 204.69% to P2.355 trillion from P772.905 billion in the same period last year. The BSP figures also show where the record total came from: of the roughly P1.94-trillion year-on-year increase in total accountabilities, about P1.58 trillion came from other fiduciary services alone, the single fastest-growing component.

The BSP's regularly published trust statistics provide a running tally of how funds move through these products alongside traditional deposits, making the central bank's subsequent data releases the reference point for tracking how the sector's growth evolves. — Katherine K. Chan