Three years ago, no country, government or central bank could have predicted the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our way of life and livelihoods. Its impact was keenly felt by everyone, particularly the vulnerable sectors of society. Nonetheless, the COVID-19 pandemic has also become a catalyst in bridging the divide between the unbanked…
One of the sectors greatly affected and influenced by the global COVID-19 crisis is without a doubt the financial industry. From the way we do transactions—shifting to virtual or digital processes and management because of the need to isolate and socially distance ourselves—down to the increased interest in digital assets like crypto, the pandemic has,…
In previous columns, I highlighted how the pandemic affected the Philippine property sector. At the height of this crisis, we saw negative office take up, correction of condominium rents and prices, and decline in mall space rents due to substantial drop in consumer traffic. In the past quarter however, property developers and investors are aggressively…
Filipinos living or working abroad never faltered in their commitment to send more money back home despite the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, jacking up cash remittances to the Philippines to a fresh high of $31.4 billion in 2021. In a statement on Tuesday, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said cash remittances coursed through banks rose…
The inflow of US dollars from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) is shoring up the Philippines’ external position, with personal remittances growing 5.3 percent year-on-year in the 11 months ending Nov. 30 last year. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said January to November remittances reached in 2021 from $29.99 billion in the same period of…
Lending by banks to small businesses has skyrocketed since the central bank approved a measure to count these loans as an alternative form of compliance with the reserve levels required of financial institutions. According to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno, the banking system allocated an average of as alternative compliance with the reserve…
The country’s financial regulators have agreed to streamline their procedures governing mergers and acquisitions in the local banking industry in a bid to expedite the process of consolidation among financial institutions. Initiated by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation, the multi-agency project, which is the first of its kind among financial regulators, aims to harmonize the…
Filipino entrepreneurs who have adopted electronic payment systems are now even more productive, efficient and competitive, thanks to the new quick response (QR) code system that makes person-to-merchant transactions easier. In a statement, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) further urged consumers, payment service providers and merchants, including micro, small and medium enterprises, to avail…
Filipino consumers are more optimistic about the coming final quarter of the year, but are less upbeat about their prospects for the next 12 months, according to the results of the central bank’s latest consumer confidence survey. At the same time, a parallel business confidence survey issued simultaneously by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)…
Retail financial transactions executed through the central bank-backed national quick reaction (QR) code standard have increased dramatically in recent months as the pandemic pushed more people toward contactless payment schemes, according to the central bank. In an online briefing, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said person-to-person payments using the “QR Ph” system —…