International Exchange Bank, more commonly known as iBank, was one of the largest banks in the Philippines, ranking within the top twenty in terms of assets. It was acquired by the larger Union Bank of the Philippines in mid-2006. Integration of the iBank brand into the UnionBank brand was completed in mid-2008.
History
iBank was founded as a commercial bank on August 17, 1995, starting operations on September 25 of that year. It grew rapidly largely due to its consumer-oriented services which proved to be popular at the time. It was one of the many banks formed during the 1990s, when the administration of Fidel V. Ramos and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas governor Gabriel Singson encouraged the formation of more banks, a policy since reversed today.
On September 22, 2003, iBank joined MegaLink and unveiled its iDeal ATM card. At the time of its launch, the iDeal card was revolutionary in the sense that it was the first ATM card to come with value-added benefits, such as shopping discounts.
The bank listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange on December 6, 2004, under the ticker symbol IBNK.
iBank was acquired by Union Bank of the Philippines on June 5, 2006 that saw 98.86% of all iBank shares being sold in a block sale, catapulting UnionBank to become the seventh-largest bank in the Philippines in terms of assets.