RCBC ramps up digitalization

MANILA, Philippines — Yuchengco-led Rizal Commercial Banking Corp (RCBC) continued to ramp up its digital agency banking deployment as throughput of its ATM Go reached P3.3 billion.

The amount was 521 percent higher than the P542 million that passed through the system in 2018 and majority of the transactions came from household-beneficiaries getting their regular cash grants for the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

In terms of volume, the number of transactions jumped 564 percent to 1.2 million last year from 186,000 a year-ago.

Lito Villanueva, executive vice president and chief innovation and inclusion officer at RCBC, said the exponential growth indicates increasing consumer awareness and adoption of digital channels that provide convenience, security, and transparency.

RCBC ATM Go is the country’s first neighborhood ATM that enables any Bancnet ATM cardholder to withdraw cash through rural banks, sari-sari stores, drugstores, cooperatives, and microfinance institutions nationwide. Customers can also deposit cash, do balance inquiry, pay bills, transfer funds, and purchase electronic load for smartphones.

RCBC recently rolled out its ATM Go service at the Rural Bank of Ilog in Kabankalan, Negros Occidental to enable the rural bank to offer convenient ATM services to its customers in far-flung communities, beyond its five branches in the province.

It also partnered with other members of the Negros Occidental Federation of Rural Bankers to introduce the ATM service to their clients. These include First Community Bank, First State Rural Bank, Rural Bank of Bacolod City, Rural Bank of Cadiz, Rural Bank of Escalante, Rural Bank of Manapla, Marayo Bank, Rural Bank of Sagay, Rural Bank of Silay City, and Rural Bank of Talisay.

The RCBC ATM Go roll out is part of the bank’s commitment to promote Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) thrusts on National Retail Payments System and National Strategy for Financial Inclusion.

A study of the United Nations-based Better Than Cash Alliance (BTCA) reported that the volume of e-payments usage in the Philippines grew to 10 percent in 2018 from only one percent in 2013, while the value of e-payments rose to 20 percent from eight percent.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said half of the transactions would be coursed through digital payments by 2023.

 “These efforts are aimed at bringing the country closer to our ultimate objective of having an inclusive payment system where no adult Filipino is left behind in terms of access to payment and other basic financial services,” Diokno said.

The BSP launched the EGov Pay facility allowing online payment of taxes and government fees and the QR PH or the country’s QR Code standard that allows convenient person-to-person money transfers.

The BSP pursues these initiatives with the payments industry led by the Philippine Payments Management, Inc.