Shift to 1-day check clearing smooth – BSP

MANILA, Philippines - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said there is relatively a smooth transition to the shift to the one-day clearing and electronic processing of checks.

BSP officer-in-charge Nestor Espenilla Jr. said there has been a relatively smooth transition with the electronic processing of checks that started last Jan. 20.

“Usually customers as well as branches were not used to it. It’s actually a very big change but relatively smooth, I would say,” he said.

According to him, the list of banks complying with the electronics clearing of checks continued to expand.

“There are issues, not all banks are able to comply immediately,” he added.

The Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC) has implemented the clearing of checks via electronic presentment through its Check Image Clearing System (CICS).

Under the CICS, only the digital images of checks and their electronic payment information would be transmitted to the paying bank, allowing a shorter turnaround time for funds to be credited to the depositors’ accounts.

According to PCHC, depositors who transact with CICS-compliant banks or branches may already withdraw on the next banking day against their validated check deposits.