Closer team work between the Philippines’ public and private sectors is required for the country to further enhance its readiness in financial technology.
Lisette Cipriano, senior digital technology specialist of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), underscored this in a briefing with journalists Wednesday, Nov. 6, at the sidelines of the 3rd Asia Finance Forum being hosted by the ADB from November 4-7, 2019.
Cipriano said there is “still a lot of improvement for the Philippine market” in terms of informing the people about financial technology and in crafting policies on this, among others.
“That’s why, the BSP is really gung-ho on providing the right environment for the industry,” she added.
Enhancing the country’s fintech policies and readiness is “no mean feat” for the central bank given the archipelagic landscape of the country, which makes works harder and costly, Cipriano said.
“Private sector and public sector collaboration is a key to success and we know that everyone needs to be in this together,” she said.
In one of the panel discussions during the Asia Finance Forum, BSP Center for Learning and Inclusion Advocacy managing director Pia Roman-Tayag told delegates that Philippine monetary officials are currently studying ways on how to address what they call disruptive technology.
This, as more banks improve their system to adapt to technological advances vis-à-vis the changing financial market landscape.
Roman-Tayag said traditional are now ramping up their digital presence in the country to keep up with innovations.
“Purely digital (banks) have also started operating but regulations are still currently using the traditional models so definitely we are looking at how regulations need to be adjusted in terms of capital requirements and what we will look for in terms of tech capabilities. But even without that framework, we are already engaging these digital-only banks that want to have presence in the Philippines,” she added. — Joann Villanueva (PNA)
