PSE Circular for Brokers No. 1551-99

June 30, 1999 PSE CIRCULAR FOR BROKERS NO. 1551-99 Joint Press Statement June 29, 1999 PBCom and AsianBank Extend Merger Deadline Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCom) and AsianBank Corporation announced today that they have requested the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas for a three month extension of the June 30, 1999 deadline to finalize their merger plans. The auditing firm, Sycip, Gorres, Velayo & Co. (SGV), recently completed its due diligence review of both banks. Based on this due diligence review, SGV has determined its preliminary recommended valuation for the two banks, which will serve as the basis for the exchange of shares that will effect the merger of the two institutions. aisadc The extension requested from the BSP will provide the additional time required for the two banks' respective shareholders to evaluate and approve the acceptability of the valuation estimates and some other pending issues related to the merger. The shareholders' agreement which embodies the principles that will govern the business conduct and performance of the merged bank, will also be finalized within the extension period sought. Both banks remain optimistic that a final agreement will be reached on the various issues involved in the merger by the end of September 1999. LLjur When completed, the AsianBank and the PBCom merger will result in a stronger and bigger universal bank with an approximately 65 billion pesos total asset base which would allow it to become one of the top ten private domestic banks in the country. The merged bank will also have a combined network of over 100 branches and approximately 8 billion pesos in capital. References : 1. Mr . Francis Varela Vice-President, AsianBank Corporation Tel. No. 893-0371 2. Mr . Francis Marcelo Vice-President, Philippine Bank of Communications Tel. No. 242-1788