KUALA LUMPUR -- CIMB Group Holdings has received approval to open a branch in the Philippines, giving the Malaysian lender a presence across the entire Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc.

This is the first time the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas -- the Philippine central bank -- has given a Southeast Asian lender the nod to establish a wholly owned financial institution with full banking operations since a round of liberalization in 2014.

CIMB, which already has physical operations in the other nine ASEAN states, had seen the Philippines as its "missing link."

"The Philippines offers tremendous opportunity with progressive regulation, attractive demographics, relatively lower banking penetration and good talent," Zafrul Aziz, CIMB's group CEO, said in a statement on Thursday.

CIMB aims to open a retail branch by the final quarter of 2018. The group is Malaysia's second-largest lender by assets and is especially strong in its home market, Indonesia and Singapore.

In the past, it attempted to enter the Philippines by acquiring Bank of Commerce. The talks with the target bank's owner, San Miguel, fell through in 2013 over restrictions against 100% foreign ownership of real estate.

CIMB rival Malayan Banking, or Maybank, established a presence in the Philippines long before the 2014 liberalization and boasts a network of about 80 branches.

With a population of over 100 million and one of the bloc's fastest-growing economies, the Philippines could be fertile ground for lenders with expertise in financial technology and vast regional networks -- particularly in light of deepening ASEAN integration. CIMB said it will apply the "best of our digital assets from across the region" and work with local partners to capitalize on opportunities.