BSP lauds approval of key reform measures

MANILA, Philippines — The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said more complaints against banks and financial institutions would be resolved promptly in favor of consumers after Congress ratified two landmark legislations.

In his weekly virtual press conference, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said both the Financial Consumer Protection (FCP) Act and amendments to the charter of the state-run Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) would be enrolled and transmitted to Malacañang for the signature of President Duterte.

Diokno said the FCP Act addresses the limited legal authority of the BSP to adjudicate complaints filed by consumers.

“The FCP Act will ensure that the BSP now has legal authority to conduct summary hearings on claims for payments or required reimbursements to aggrieved consumers,” Diokno said.

In 2020, data showed about 56 percent of the total 23,275 complaints filed with the central bank’s consumer assistance mechanism and BSP Online Buddy (BOB) were resolved in favor of consumers.

About 35 percent of the total were deemed acted upon by the concerned BSP supervised financial institutions (BSFIs), but the resolutions were not shared with the regulator.

Diokno said the BSP is still assessing the status of the 9,181 new complaints filed in 2021.

According to the BSP chief, the PDIC Charter amendments would strengthen cooperation between PDIC and BSP to the benefit of depositors.

The revision placed PDIC as an attached agency of the central bank instead of the Department of Finance (DOF).

Diokno earlier told members of the Senate committee on banks, financial institutions, and currencies that financial losses based on complaints filed with the central bank amounted to P2 billion between 2019 and 2021.

For 2021 alone, Diokno said the declared amounts in the complaints received reached P540 million.

During the height of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, a total of 42,456 complaints were elevated to the BSP Consumer Assistance Mechanism.

Diokno said hacking and other malware attacks surged by a whopping 2,324 percent in 2020 from 2019, while phishing and other social engineering schemes increased by 302 percent.

Furthermore, the central bank continues to promote the fair treatment of financial consumers as part of its commitment to protect consumer welfare and reinforce public confidence in the financial system.

It recently issued memorandum 2021-069 to remind BSFIs to uphold fair treatment of financial consumers under the BSP’s FCP Framework.

Under the FCP framework, BSFIs must treat clients fairly, honestly, and professionally at all stages of their relationship, and provide positive customer experiences.

“Practices that discriminate or take advantage of clients, including vulnerable groups like low-income earners or persons with disability, are contrary to this standard,” Diokno said.