History

HOW THE BANK STARTED

A journey to Dulag in Leyte is a rousing blend of cultural and historical awakening.  It is located 37 kilometers away from Tacloban City, the regional capital of Eastern Visayas.  Dulag stands out full of historical backdrop and cultural heritage to reckon with.  The road trip from Tacloban City to Dulag provides a breathtaking view of the Cancabato Bay extending to the horizon of the Pacific Ocean.

The cultural setting of the town of Dulag reflects series of colonization, first, by Spaniards as evidenced by the wreckage of the structure of the old Spanish-built Roman Catholic Church building that was bombed by the Japanese during its occupation.  Second, the emerging of Hill 120, where the first American flag was raised by the U.S. Liberation Forces on October 20, 1944 after the Fall of Bataan, the end of World War II.  These have become one of the landmarks to recall the historical milieu of Leyte.

From this town rose the RURAL BANK OF DULAG (LEYTE), INC., a rural bank established and envisioned to provide the Dulagnons access to financial services and promote countryside development.  The idea of establishing a rural bank started in 1977 when the few good and philanthropist men in Dulag with the likes of the late Mayor Faustino Serrano and Engr. Ramon Juarez Sr. sounded the call and convinced several prominent businessmen in town to invest in the project.  Joined by the efforts of some incorporators, a proposal to open a rural bank was crafted and submitted to Central Bank of the Philippines.  After it got a Certificate of Authority from the Central Bank of the Philippines on July 19, 1978, with an authorized capital of P1,500,000.00 and a paid-up capital of P150,000.00, it formally opened its doors to the public on July 23, 1978.

The bank’s early operations focused on a collateral-based loan operation system.  The bank offered its products and services to the people by providing them access to capital for their small businesses and other financing needs.  It started a very conservative way of banking in terms of products and services offered.  In other words, the bank engaged in traditional banking.