The Philippine National Bank (PNB, Filipino/; ; Hokkien ) is one of the largest banks in the Philippines. It was established by the Philippine government on July 22, 1916, during the American Era. The bank became the first universal bank in the Philippines in 1980 and was acquired by tycoon Lucio Tan after it was privatized by the government in 1989. After its merger with the Tan-owned Allied Bank on February 9, 2013, PNB became the fifth largest private domestic bank in the country. To date, PNB has a total domestic footprint of 713 branches and more than 1,400 ATMs strategically located nationwide. PNB maintains its position as the Philippine bank with the most extensive international reach with more than 70 overseas branches, representative offices, remittance centers and subsidiaries across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. History Early years The Philippine National Bank was established as a government-owned banking institution on July 22, 1916. Its primary mandate was to provide financial services to Philippine industry and agriculture and support the government's economic development effort. World War I, then raging in Europe, generated huge demand for the country's major exports, namely sugar, copra, coconut oil, Manila hemp and tobacco. However, not much was being done to develop the industries that produced these sought-after crops since access to credit facilities was limited. To solve this problem, Henderson Martin, vice governor of the Philippines, together with Miguel Cuaderno (who later became Central Bank governor) drafted a charter for a national bank. On February 4, 1916, Public Act 2612 was passed by the Philippine Legislature providing for the establishment of PNB to replace the small P1 million government-owned Agricultural Bank. PNB's first head office was the Masonic Temple along Escolta, Manila, the "Wall Street of the Philippines" then, in the bustling district of Santa Cruz in Manila. An American, Henry Parker Willis, was its first president. With PNB's establishment, Filipinos had a bank of their own. PNB was authorized to grant short and long-term loans to agriculture and industry. Filipino farmers then could avail of loans with interest between 8% to 10% per annum. PNB was also authorized to receive deposits, open foreign credits and rediscount bills. On July 24, 1916, PNB established its first branch outside Manila in Iloilo. In 1917, PNB opened its first non-Philippine branch in New York City, United States. The following year, it established five more domestic