MANILA, Philippines – MMPC Auto Financial Services Corp. (MAFS), the auto-financing joint venture between Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. (MMPC) and BDO Leasing and Finance Inc. (BDOLF), aims to cover all 49 Mitsubishi dealership outlets in the Philippines by the end of March next year.
“We just started in Metro Manila. But we are gradually expanding our coverage area nationwide,” said MAFS president and CEO Mikihisa Takayama.
Currently, MAFS has business in 16 Mitsubishi outlets in Metro Manila and surrounding areas.
The company earlier projected it would finance a total of 20,000 car units by 2020 or about 20 percent of MMPC’s 100,000 car sales target for that year.
Takayama said MAFS’ entry into the auto financing business would enhance Mitsubishi’s sales through its flexible loan products and fast application process.
“We believe our operation can be very effective, he said, adding the application could be processed as fast as one day.
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Takayama said they could be more lenient on the downpayment charged to car consumers since MAFS is a non-bank financial company.
“We are more flexible and free so we can consider lower downpayment from the usual 20 percent. But I can’t say how many percent yet because we are still in the start-up period,” he said.
Dante Calma, first vice president for MMPC’s marketing division, noted the preference of consumers to purchase cars through loans, rather than cold cash.
He said the ratio of consumers who favor financing options has now reached 60 to 70 percent, as compared to those who directly pay in cash, which is about 30 to 40 percent.
Takayama also expressed confidence that interest rates, including those for car loans, in the Philippines would remain stable in the next coming years.
MAFS officially started its operations yesterday. It is 40 percent owned by BDO Leasing and foreign companies, namely, MMPC, Sojitz Corp. and JACCS Co. Ltd. with a five percent, 35 percent, and 20 percent stake, respectively.
