BSP orders all banks to shift to EMV compatible ATMs

Deadline set on January 2017

CEBU, Philippines - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has given all banks until January 2017 to comply with the mandated shift to automated teller machines (ATMs) compatible with Europay MasterCard Visa (EMV) chip-enabled cards.

Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) President Lorenzo V. Tan told The FREEMAN all banks are expected to be fully compliant on or before the deadline set by the central bank.

Tan, president and CEO of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said the EMV electronic chip technology is designed to give tighter security and prevent ATM card fraud incidents.

The BSP's mandate to adopt the EMV technology is aimed at strengthening the country's electronic payments system and protect consumers from ATM theft.

EMV is a global standard for chip-based credit and debit transactions and is deemed more secured than the magnetic stripe technology which is currently used in most bank-issued cards in the country. The EMV chip will be installed in bank-issued cards.

The chip technology is protected by various security measures unlike magnetic stripe whose data can be copied through inserting a device into the ATM.

Tan said RCBC won't have a problem complying with BSP's mandate. "Before that (deadline), we will be fully compliant," he added.

It was in August 2013 when the Monetary Board approved an enhanced Information Technology Risk Management (ITRM) framework that requires Philippine banks to eventually shift to EMV technology. — (FREEMAN)