BDO Unibank has raised PHP 132 billion from its sixth peso-denominated ASEAN Sustainability Bond issue, as reported by the Manila Times. The amount was more than 26 times the original PHP 5 billion offer. This makes it the largest single corporate bond issuance in Philippine history, surpassing BDO’s own previous record of PHP 115 billion set in July 2025. Strong demand from both retail and institutional investors prompted BDO to close the offer period early on 10 July. That was just a day after the bonds launched, well ahead of the original 21 July deadline. The bonds carry a 1.5-year…

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Philippine Payments Management, Inc (PPMI) have launched three new digital payment initiatives aimed at making payments more accessible and convenient for Filipinos. BSP and PPMI introduced Direct Debit PH, InstaPay Cash-In, and InstaPay for Business at a ceremony held at BSP’s head office on 29 July. Direct Debit PH lets customers authorise billers to automatically collect payments from their accounts on scheduled due dates. InstaPay Cash-In lets a user send a request for funds to another user, who can then send the funds directly from their bank or e-wallet account. InstaPay for…

Binance and its local partner BlockShoals Technologies have appointed Jen Bilango as General Manager for Binance in the Philippines, as reported by BitPinas. The appointment comes as the company prepares for regulatory compliance and an official market entry through Binance PH by BlockShoals. Bilango previously served as General Manager at BlockchainSpace, supporting Web3 communities across Southeast Asia, including initiatives with The Sandbox. She also served as Country Manager for Coins.ph, a locally licensed cryptocurrency exchange, where she took part in launching the PHPC stablecoin. Outside Web3, Bilango was a board director at Mabuhay Capital Corporation, working on investment banking transactions…

The ASEAN Tech Summit 2026 opened in Manila, bringing together heads of government, regulators, and fintech leaders to discuss Southeast Asia’s digital future. Running under the theme “Building ASEAN’s Digital Economy: Secure. Sustainable. Inclusive. Borderless,” the two-day summit covers AI, digital assets, cybersecurity, open finance, and financial inclusion. In his welcome address, FinTech Alliance PH Founding Chairman and RCBC EVP Lito Villanueva said ASEAN is no longer merely participating in the global digital economy but is increasingly defining its direction. “The blueprint for the next decade of global finance is being written today. ASEAN has the opportunity not just to…

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched a new regulatory framework for Sukuk, aiming to grow the Philippines’ Islamic finance market by encouraging companies to offer Shari’ah-compliant investment products. The SEC introduced the Guidelines on the Issuance and Disclosure of Sukuk in partnership with the Asian Development Bank at a forum held on 15 July at the SEC’s Makati headquarters. Sukuk refers to certificates of equal value representing undivided investment or rights to underlying assets, usufructs, or projects structured according to Shari’ah principles. Implemented through SEC Memorandum Circular No. 12, Series of 2026, the guidelines set out rules on…

Manulife Philippines has appointed Erwin Go as Chief Corporate Solutions and Alternative Distribution Officer, as reported by Malaya Business Insight. Erwin joins the insurer’s executive committee in the role. He will lead the development and execution of Manulife Philippines’ Corporate Solutions and Alternative Distribution strategy, with a focus on strengthening the company’s group insurance, partnerships, and emerging distribution channels. “Erwin has been instrumental in advancing our Corporate Solutions and Alternative Distribution business, bringing strong commercial leadership and deep industry expertise,” said Rahul Hora, President and Chief Executive Officer of Manulife Philippines. Go said he sees strong opportunities to deepen partnerships…

MocaMoca, the digital lending platform operated by SEC-registered Copperstone Lending Inc., has surpassed 20 million active users in the Philippines, more than five years after its launch. The app is also among the top 10 most-downloaded digital lending apps on Google Play in the country. The milestone comes as more Filipinos turn to regulated digital lenders over informal credit sources. Only 16% of adult borrowers currently choose formal financial institutions, according to BSP’s 2025 Consumer Finance and Inclusion Survey, while the World Bank’s 2025 Global Findex Report found that only about half of Filipino adults hold a formal financial account,…

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has appointed Dino Gasmen as Assistant Governor for Financial Markets, effective 18 January 2027, as reported by the Philippine News Agency and Philippine Daily Inquirer. The Monetary Board approved the appointment on 16 July, and Gasmen will join the BSP as a technical adviser on 3 November to allow for a smooth handover. Gasmen succeeds Senior Assistant Governor Edna Villa, who retires on 15 January 2027 after more than 40 years at the central bank. Her BSP career included serving as chief of staff to two BSP governors, alternate executive director representing the Philippines…

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is preparing to pilot a stablecoin-based settlement system with Meridian to speed up and lower the cost of cross-border payments to the Philippines, as reported by ABS-CBN News. The bank and the global digital clearinghouse is trying to build the payment rail, initially targeting payroll credits for freelancers, virtual assistants, and other workers in the country’s informal economy who receive income from abroad. Stablecoins are digital tokens typically pegged to a fiat currency such as the US dollar. In cross-border transactions, banks can use them as a settlement instrument before converting funds into…

MariBank Philippines, Inc. (A Rural Bank) has received a digital banking licence from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), completing its upgrade from a rural bank, changing its name now under the corporate name MariBank Philippines, Inc. The Monetary Board approved the upgrade under Resolution No. 133 on 19 February, according to BSP Circular Letter No. CL-2026-035. The Securities and Exchange Commission cleared MariBank’s amended Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws on 16 June. Later, BSP Governor issued the bank’s Certificate of Authority to operate as a digital bank on 8 July. MariBank began operating under its new digital banking licence…

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have signed an Information-Sharing Agreement to strengthen the investigation and prosecution of financial account scams under the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA). BSP General Counsel Roberto L. Figueroa, representing BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr., signed the agreement with DOJ Undersecretary Nicholas Felix L. Ty at the BSP Head Office in Manila on 22 July. The agreement sets out procedures for the DOJ to request and receive financial account information from BSP’s Consumer Account Protection Office, under AFASA and BSP Circular No. 1214. It also includes safeguards limiting…

LandBank of the Philippines and Visa have launched the LandBank Visa Government Purchase Card (GPC), a digital payment tool for government agencies, as announced on Visa’s official LinkedIn. The card replaces cash advances and manual reimbursements with built-in spending controls and digital monitoring. Agencies can set credit limits per cardholder and restrict transactions to approved merchant categories, such as travel, fuel, and representation expenses. LandBank designed the card for low-value procurement, official travel, and recurring expenses permitted under government rules. Among the first agencies to adopt it is the Bureau of the Treasury, which manages the custody and disbursement of…

SwiftPay, a payments technology company under BSP-regulated Swift Technology Ventures, has launched a real-time fraud detection platform. The platform, named SwiftGuard, was developed to help lenders comply with stricter digital security mandates. Financial scams target more than 60% of Filipino adults annually, according to company data. E-wallets are the leading channel for illicit transactions, accounting for 74% of cases, followed by wire and bank transfers at 14%. Real-time fraud detection under new rules The Philippines introduced the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA), alongside BSP Circular No. 1213, to strengthen fraud prevention requirements. These regulations require banks and BSP-supervised financial institutions…

Atome has launched Atome Card Shield, an insurance plan developed with Chubb Philippines for its more than 3 million Atome Cardholders in the country, as announced on Atome’s official LinkedIn. The plan combines online shopping protection with personal accident coverage for PHP 62 a month, or roughly USD 1. Card Shield covers buyer and purchase protection for online shopping, online fraud and unauthorised transactions. The deal also includes personal accident benefits of up to PHP 150,000, including accidental death while riding a motorcycle. Cardholders aged 18 to 75 in good credit standing can activate the plan directly within the Atome…

DITO BizBayan and GCash for Business have partnered to offer Filipino MSMEs discounted merchant fees bundled with business connectivity, as reported by ABS-CBN News. The offering pairs DITO’s WoWFi Optima device, which provides 5G business connectivity, with GCash SoundPay, a device that audibly confirms successful payments in real time. Merchants who purchase a WoWFi Optima device gain access to a lower GCash for Business merchant discount rate (MDR). Bundle subscribers pay 0.6% on e-wallet transactions, down from GCash’s standard 1.0% rate. To add, the card payment processing fees have also dropped to 2.8%. SoundPay is designed to solve a common…

Philippine Seven Corp. (PSC), the exclusive 7-Eleven licensee in the Philippines, is nearing full cashless coverage across its store network. PSC President Richard Lee said 98% of stores nationwide now accept digital payments, according to BusinessWorld and Inquirer.net, speaking at a media briefing following the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting on 16 July. “We are working on it. Moving forward, we aim to increase our digital payment capability to 100%,” Lee said. Cashless payment acceptance expanded from more than 1,000 stores at the end of 2025 to over 4,000 stores as of end-May 2026. Customers can pay using credit and debit…

UnionDigital Bank, a digital banking subsidiary of UnionBank of the Philippines, is set to launch a microloan program with the Social Security System (SSS) this year, as reported by BusinessWorld. The program will let micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) apply for capital digitally through UnionDigital’s banking app. SSS first introduced LoanLite last September, and the product builds around it. It offers eligible SSS members loan amounts between PHP 1,000 and PHP 20,000, with repayment terms of 15 to 90 days at an 8% annual interest rate plus a service fee. UnionDigital Banks’s head of brand and communications, Kimberly Dy-Tenchavez,…

Philippine Business Bank Inc. has appointed Maria Lourdes Trinidad as its Chief Operating Officer (COO), effective 16 July 2026, as reported by Asian Banking & Finance. Trinidad will also hold the rank of Executive Vice President, the bank said in a bourse filing. Trinidad most recently served as Senior Vice President and Head of Enterprise Risk at Philippine Business Bank. Before that, she held chief risk officer roles at RCBC Savings Bank and Sterling Bank of Asia. Philippine Business Bank is a thrift bank focused on small and medium enterprises, or businesses with assets between PHP 3 million and PHP…

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has lifted its nearly five-year moratorium on new online lending platforms (OLPs), replacing it with a stricter framework for financing and lending companies. The Commission issued Memorandum Circular No. 20, Series of 2026 (MC 20) on 7 July, effective 1 August. MC 20 applies to all financing companies (FCs) and lending companies (LCs) using digital apps or web-based systems to offer credit. The guidelines strengthen consumer protection through tighter disclosure requirements, responsible lending practices, and closer regulatory oversight. SEC Chairperson Francis Lim said the SEC “welcomes and promotes financial innovation but will not tolerate…

Philippine thrift banks grew profit, assets, and loans in the first quarter of 2026, even as the sector adapts to digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and tougher competition from digital banks and fintechs, according to the Chamber of Thrift Banks (CTB), as reported by Philstar. Net profit rose 11.8% to PHP 5.86 billion in the first quarter from PHP 5.24 billion a year earlier, per BSP data. Total operating income jumped 27.6% to PHP 28.84 billion, supported by a 24.7% increase in net interest income to PHP 24.77 billion. Non-interest income climbed 48.7% to PHP 4.06 billion, while fees and commissions…