Cezar Consing is new BPI President

Career investment banker will take over on April 18, 2013.

Bank of the Philippine Islands, one of the Philippines’ top five commercial banks, yesterday announced the appointment of Cezar Consing as its President. Consing succeeds Aurelio Montinola III, who will retire next April.

“After an extensive search process, we are very pleased to announce the selection of Cezar (Bong) Consing as the ideal candidate to lead the Bank of the Philippines Islands in this increasingly complex financial market environment,” said BPI chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

“His extensive experience in international banking and financial services, combined with his knowledge of BPI over a large span of years, will be an exciting addition to our exceptional management team."

Consing, 53, has over 25 years' experience in international finance, particularly in investment banking, commercial banking and private equity.

He earned a degree in Economics (accelerated program, magna cum laude) from De La Salle University in 1979 and a master’s degree in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan in 1980.

He joined BPI in 1981 as the youngest management trainee in the corporate planning department. He then moved to corporate banking, where he was appointed assistant vice president in 1985.

He then joined J.P. Morgan & Co., building a 20-year career in investment banking in Hong Kong and Singapore. He was the firm's head or co-head of investment banking for the Asia Pacific from 1997 to 2004.

From 2001, he was president of J.P. Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd. and had overall responsibility for the combined Asian investment banking businesses of J.P. Morgan, Chase Manhattan and Jardine Fleming.

Consing represented J.P. Morgan on the Boards of Directors of BPI and BPI Capital from 1995 to 2000.

Consing rejoined the BPI Board as an independent director from 2004 to 2007, and again in 2010. He currently serves as an independent director and a member of the bank's personnel and risk management committee.

Since 2004, Consing has been a partner at The Rohatyn Group, a US$3 billion international hedge fund and private equity firm, running its Hong Kong office. He is also an Independent Non-Executive Director of the CIMB Group.

BPI is the Philippines’ third largest bank in terms of assets, its largest bank in terms of market capitalization and its most profitable bank. It is owned by the Ayala Corporation, the largest conglomerate in the Philippines.