BSP urges foreign investors to explore PH’s financial services sector
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is inviting foreign companies to invest and bring new technologies and technical expertise to the Philippines’ financial services sector.
According to BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno, investors can “take advantage of untapped potential in the financial services space and be our partners in achieving our economic growth and financial inclusion objectives.”
The Philippine central bank stated that the new tech brought on by venture capitalists can support the competitiveness of the local banks and allow expansion to new markets.
Under the BSP’s digital payments transformation roadmap, the agency is looking to shift 50% of the retail payments volume to digital. BSP is also planning to onboard 70% of Filipino adults into the formal financial system by 2023.
Meanwhile, a discussion paper from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) stated that the “government needs to support the financial technology (fintech) industry in meeting its funding and talent development needs for the sector to grow.”
The paper added that the presence of foreign investors could drive the growth of fintech startups in the country.
