A total of 2,481,788 unbanked Filipinos have attained financial inclusivity through the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) project.
In partnership with state-run Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank), PhilSys registrants have opened bank accounts.
Of the total, 850,875 have been issued their Agent Banking Cards (ABCs) for free and without initial deposit.
The rest will get their cards in July.
Under the ABC strategy, LandBank enters into an agreement with point-of-sale partners to facilitate cash out transactions and with full-suite Agent Banking Partners, to offer card sale, cash in, cash out, fund transfer, and bills payment.
ABC holders can also withdraw at Mastercard-accepting automated teller machines, perform cashless transactions, and shop online
The Agent Banking Program allows customers in places without formal banking presence to enjoy lower transaction costs, improved access to financial services, and save on travel and related expenses.
Beneficiaries of the national government’s conditional cash transfer and unconditional cash transfer programs can also withdraw their cash grants through the bank’s agent partners.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), which implements PhilSys, earlier reported that about 82 percent of the initial 10.52 Filipinos who have registered for PhilSys do not have formal bank accounts.
“LandBank is one with the national government’s financial inclusion agenda. In partnership with the PSA, we are focused on opening accounts for up to eight million low-income, unbanked individuals from the 32 PhilSys priority provinces at the soonest time,” LandBank president and CEO Cecilia Borromeo said.
Opening LandBank transaction accounts can be made after the second phase of registration, were supporting documents are validated and biometrics captured.
LandBank also tapped some branches as well as accredited cooperatives, associations, small and medium enterprises, and Agent Banking partners nationwide, to assist in account application and Know-Your-Customer requirements at the PhilSys registration sites.
As of April 30, LandBank has co-located in 790 PhilSys registration centers across 10 regions
It will put up additional centers as registrations continue to roll out in 32 priority provinces.
Meanwhile, a mall-based PhilSys registration is now open in partnership with Robinsons Corporation.
Apart from registration sites at local government units, PhilSys signup centers are accessible in all Robinsons Malls nationwide for the Step 2 process.
The Step 1 demographic registration process can be done through PhilSys online portal https://register.philsys.gov.ph/.
Registration for and delivery of the Philippine Identification (PhilID) card are both free of charge.
Signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte in August 2018, Republic Act 11055, or the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national ID for all Filipinos and resident aliens.
The national ID shall be a valid proof of identity that shall be a means of simplifying public and private transactions, enrolment in schools, and the opening of bank accounts.
It will also boost efficiency, especially in dealing with government services where people will only need to present the PhilID during transactions. (PNA)
