OCB issues 5 million ESOP shares to employees

Orient Commercial Bank (OCB) is expected to offer 5 million preferred shares to its employees in the first quarter of this year.

On January 12, 2022, the Board of Directors of Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) approved the plan to issue shares under the employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).

Specifically, the bank will offer 5 million preferred shares to employees at the price of 10,000 VND/share. Newly issued shares will be subject to transfer restriction for 4 years from the date of issue. The Bank will distribute shares to employees as soon as it is approved by the State Bank and the State Securities Commission.

ESOP is one of the annual payment programs offered by OCB to its workers in recognition of their contributions to the bank's growth. Employees will be motivated to spend their time, and their working spirit and long-term dedication will be encouraged as a result.

This is part of the plan to increase charter capital of OCB previously approved by the annual general meeting of shareholders.

In 2021, the bank made an important capital increase to VND 13,699 billion by paying a stock dividend at the rate of 25%. Nearly 274 million shares were issued to the market, bringing the total number of outstanding shares to nearly 1,369 million shares.

OCB shares were officially listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE) from January 28, 2021 and are in the Top 10 bank stocks with the strongest increase in price in 2021. After nearly a year of listing, up to now, the market price of OCB shares has increased by 78%, bringing the bank's capitalization from VND 20,109 billion to over VND 35,548 billion.

In terms of business results, despite being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, thanks to good cost control, the bank still recorded positive profits in the first nine months of the year, up 71% over the same period last year. The bank also always focused on credit quality control, the bad debt ratio dropped to a low level of 1.51% at the end of the third quarter.

Along with that, OCB has implemented many programs of interest rate exemption and reduction, debt restructuring according to Circular 01 of the State Bank with low-interest preferential loan packages with a scale of up to nearly VND 9,000 billion. The bank also expects to reduce about VND 800 billion in interest income for the whole year of 2021 to support and accompany customers affected by the pandemic."