ATRAM Trust Corporation (ATRAM), an independent asset and wealth manager in the Philippines, announced that it has signed a strategic partnership with global wealthtech platform provider additiv. The strategic partnership will enable ATRAM to digitise their wealth management platform that is scheduled to be launched this year. ATRAM’s new digital wealth management platform will utilise additiv’s orchestration engine DFS® to launch personalised wealth and investment services. The asset manager said that the fully digitised solution will offer ATRAM’s high net worth (HNW) customers easy and efficient access to innovative advisory services supported by ATRAM relationship managers, facilitating a seamless client-advisor…

UnionDigital Bank announced that it has secured the necessary approval from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to operate as a digital bank on July 12, 2022. The receipt of a Certificate of Authority (COA) is the final step in the three-stage digital bank license application process. The UnionDigital Bank app is now live to a limited set of customers. For now, the app is currently available by invitation only. Future updates on the launch will be available through the digital bank’s social media channels. UnionDigital Bank said in a statement that it “aims to empower the country’s journey toward…

It is evident that digital acceleration is creating a new payments paradigm as corporate non-cash payments are forecasted to reach US$200 billion transactions by 2025. Shifting global payments priorities are placing new pressures on payments operations. Payments executives are facing increasing expectations to transition their departments from cost centers to creators of enterprise value. What strategic considerations can help businesses meet digital economy demands and maximise end-to-end payments efficiency? A recent study from LexisNexis Risk® Solutions and Capgemini Invent explores the evolution of corporate payments with insights from 400 managers and executives working with corporate payments. The global study outlines…

Southeast Asia ride hailing superapp Grab announced via an app advisory that it will delay charging additional fees for InstaPay transactions until August 8 this year. InstaPay is a real-time electronic payments system that had recently been designated as a Prominently Important Payment System (PIPS) by the the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The app advisory added that a fee of PHP15 will be charged on InstaPay transactions made from GrabPay to other banks and e-wallets. However, the transfers between GrabPay e-wallets will continue to be free of charge.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Monetary Board has named PESONet and InstaPay as Prominently Important Payment Systems (PIPS) pursuant to the National Payment Systems Act (NPSA). PESONet and InstaPay are digital payment schemes launched in 2017-2018 under the National Retail Payment System. The designation of PESONet and InstaPay as PIPS would subject them to closer BSP supervision and monitoring to protect the public. The two payment systems are expected to comply with international standards that foster safe, efficient, and reliable operations. PESONet is a batch electronic fund transfer service and is a viable alternative for checks and recurring payments. Meanwhile,…

The Philippine Postal Corporation (Post Office) has partnered with UBX, a fintech unit created by the Union Bank of the Philippines, to launch a capacity development project which will allow the postal agency to offer financial services. Under the partnership, UBX will provide the necessary technical knowledge in digital finance and open finance to enable the Post Office to provide its customers with the necessary financial services through its network in cities and municipalities nationwide. The Post Office will be able to offer services such as disbursements, fund transfers, cash withdrawals, loan applications, payments, insurance, and collections, among others through…

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is now on its third phase of sustainability-related regulations with the recent release of draft guidelines on the integration of sustainability principles in banks’ investment activities. The central bank said that the finalisation of this policy proposal is targeted for August 2022. The first and second phases were marked by issuances of the Sustainable Finance Framework in April 2020 and the Environmental and Social Risk Management Framework in October 2021, respectively. These regulations set out the expectations on the integration of sustainability principles in banks’ core strategies, governance, and risk management frameworks, especially in…

Across Asia-Pacific (APAC), sustainable finance services are growing in popularity among consumers. But despite rising demand for greener and more sustainable products, skepticism remains over how strongly banks are committed to their sustainability agenda. This is according to a new global survey conducted by banking software company Mambu, which polled 6,000 consumers to understand their attitudes to green finance, their expectations of financial institutions and the types of sustainable products and services they’d like to consume. In APAC, results show that consumers are shifting their purchase behavior to become more sustainable, indicating that environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations are…

The share of digital payments to total retail payments volume in the Philippines rose to 30.3% in 2021 from 20.1% in 2020, according to the latest e-payments data of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The value of digital payments in the country, meanwhile, represented 44.1 percent of total retail payments in 2021, up from the 26.8 percent recorded a year earlier. The key contributors to the overall growth of digital payments were merchant payments, peer-to-peer (P2P) remittances, and business payments of salaries and wages to employees, all of which are high-frequency, low value retail transactions. The volume of merchant…

Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) inked a collaboration with the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) to digitalise cooperatives nationwide. The partnership dubbed ‘Madiskarteng Pilipino, Madiskarteng Kilusang Kooperatibismo’ aims to support cooperative members through digital financial inclusion and educate them on personal finance management, savings, insurance, payments, investments, and the use of digital finance apps and platforms like DiskarTech and ATM Go. RCBC said that this is part of its overarching goal of making finance inclusive and accessible to all Filipinos especially the unbanked and underserved segment. “Cooperatives play a key role in poverty reduction and economic development. These small to medium-scale…

Former Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Governor has stepped down to hand over the leadership of the central bank to Felipe M. Medalla. A Monetary Board member since 2011, Governor Medalla is a seasoned economist and professor whose career in public service spans more than four decades and the administrations of four presidents. He is the sixth Governor of the BSP and will serve the unexpired term of former Governor Diokno. Meanwhile, Diokno has been appointed as the Finance Secretary where he will be heading the economic team. According to a CNBC report, he will be focused on getting back…

ING announced that it will leave the retail banking market in the Philippines before the end of 2022. It will, however, continue to invest in its wholesale banking business and global shared services operations in the Philippines. According to ING, its retail business in the Philippines was intended as the first step and foundation for a broader Asia retail banking plan. The bank added that the business has “demonstrated good progress, commercial momentum and growth potential” since its launch in 2018. However, the uncertain global macro situation in the last few years led to ING deciding not to expand the…

The Malacañang palace, the official residence and principal workplace of the Philippines’ president, has approved a circular institutionalising the whole-of-government support for the implementation of the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (NSFI 2022-2028). This also pushes for the adoption of financial inclusion as a development agenda at both the national and subnational levels. The Memorandum Circular No. 97 directs all government agencies to support the successful implementation of the NSFI by incorporating relevant priority initiatives in the agency work programmes, policies and budgets. Furthermore, it encourages the Regional Development Councils and the Local Development Councils to adopt financial inclusion objectives,…

Organizations across Asia are facing challenges in recruiting and retaining cybersecurity talents, a skills shortage that’s putting them at risk amid increasing occurrence of security breaches and resulting financial losses, findings from a research by cybersecurity firm Fortinet show. The 2022 Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report, released in April, shares results of a survey conducted among more than 1,200 IT and cybersecurity decision-makers from 29 different locations. The study, which sought to understand cybersecurity professionals’ key concerns around talent, recruitment, diversity and security awareness, found that in Asia, a staggering 72% of respondents reported experiencing at least one breach during the…

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has urged financial institutions to adopt robust control measures against cyber attacks on retail electronic payments and financial services (EPFS) due to the increasing shift to digital channels. According to the memorandum that BSP had circulated, “BSFIs should regularly conduct risk assessments of their product features, business rules, as well as application controls, and enforce appropriate enhancements and mitigation measures.” Furthermore, BSP advised financial institutions to remove clickable links in emails or text messages and to send notifications through registered mobile numbers or email addresses when requesting changes to customer information. After thorough risk analysis, financial…

In Singapore, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are struggling to secure sufficient financing from traditional lenders, with most still largely relying on their personal networks to support their business, findings from a new study by cloud banking startup Mambu show. The Small Business, Big Growth report draws on results of a survey of 1,000+ SME owners globally who set up their company and applied for a business loan in the last five years. The study, which sought to understand SMEs’ most pressing challenges, found that SMEs in Singapore face an uphill struggle when it comes to securing financing. In the last five…

Lista, a bookkeeping app for MSMEs based in the Philippines, has raised over US$ 5.1 million in a recent funding round led by Singaporean VC firm Openspace Ventures. Existing investors East Ventures, Saison Capital, and 1982 Ventures had also participated in the round. New investors include Stephen CuUnjieng (Former Chairman and CEO of Evercore Asia), Aurelien Pichon (Google), Roland Ros (Kumu’s CEO), Rexy Dorado (Kumu’s President), and more. The round was also joined by its previous angel investors including Brian Cu (ex-President of Grab Philippines), Willy Arifin (Monde Nissin Family Ventures), Amrish Rau (Pinelabs’ CEO), Kunal Shah (CRED’s founder), Jitendra…

The pandemic has accelerated the growth of non-face-to-face interactions, forcing banks, merchants and others to swiftly deploy digital tools to accurately verify the identity of the person on the other end of a digital transaction. A 2021 study by advisory firm Aite-Novarica looked at ten vendors in the document identification and verification (ID&V) space, highlighting a notable growth in the demand for document ID&V solutions. Within the next two years, 90% of financial institutions surveyed by the firm shared plans to implement mobile identity document capture and verification solutions. These trends are reflective of the changing face of customer expectations and behaviors…

MoneyGram has partnered the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) with to initiate the roll out of  its crypto-to-cash service that is now available in key remittance markets, including the Philippines, Canada, the U.S., and Kenya for the first wave of users. According to MoneyGram, global cash-out functionality is expected to be available by the end of June 2022. Powered by the Stellar blockchain and Stellar-enabled digital wallets, MoneyGram’s retail agent network, and Circle’s USD Coin (USDC), a fully-reserved dollar digital currency, the service provides cash users access to cryptocurrency. Users of the Stellar-connected digital wallets Vibrant and LOBSTR, with more wallets…

Alibaba Cloud Philippines is set to host the “Alibaba Cloud Day Philippines: Fintech Summit 2022” at the at Grand Hyatt Manila on 21 June 2022. During this half-day summit, attendees will hear from industry leaders about the latest policies, hottest trends and challenges in the financial services industry. This includes the current state of fintech in the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ take on the regulatory aspect, the rise of digital wallets and how to create a customer-compliant onboarding experience among others. Esteemed speakers joining the summit include representatives and industry leaders from Alibaba Cloud, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, GCash,…