MANILA, Philippines — Only six digital banks are authorized to operate in the country for now after applicants failed to qualify to fill the remaining one slot due to non-compliance with requirements, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno.
Diokno yesterday told participants of the 53rd Annual Conference of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX) the nine applicants that managed to beat the deadline failed to submit the complete requirements to the BSP.
“To be accurate, we approved six digital banks. It will remain six because the seventh slot, which was supposed to be completed by the nine applicants, failed to submit the complete documentation,” Diokno said.
The BSP announced on Aug. 19 the closure of the window for the establishment of digital banks and limiting the number of licenses to seven.
The central bank has granted digital banking licenses to Overseas Filipino Bank,Tonik Digital Bank, UNObank, Union Digital Bank, GOtyme and Maya Bank.
The closure of the application window allows the BSP to monitor the performance and impact of digital banks on the banking system and their contribution to the financial inclusion agenda.
“That’s why we kept it at six. So that we will be able closely monitor the development also to make sure that there is healthy competition among the digital banks and the existing banks,” Diokno said.
In his presentation during the virtual forum, Diokno said the BSP has been leveraging on technological progress to hasten economic growth and financial inclusion.
The BSP chief pointed out the Philippines has embraced financial technology to bring more Filipinos inside the financial loop and help improve their lives even before the pandemic.
“These developments have enabled the Filipino people to continuously transact business within the safety of their homes during this time of the pandemic,” Diokno said.
Under its Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap, the BSP aims to convert 50 percent of total retail transactions to digital channels and raise the number of Filipino adults with bank accounts to 70 percent by 2023.
Voyager and PayMaya Philippines president Shailesh Baidwan said digital payments adoption has taken off over the past year and more Filipinos are getting financially included.
“The COVID-19, despite of all the destruction that it brought, the one thing that it did was accelerate digital transformation,” he added.
Baidwan, who is also a member of the board of directors of Maya Bank, said digital transformation is now happening at a faster pace amid the various inclusive and disruptive innovations from the financial technology (Fintech) and banking industries backed by enabling regulatory environment from the BSP.
