WHILE formal account ownership in the Philippines has more than doubled over the past decade, many Filipinos ‘remain underserved’ in terms of access to formal savings and credit products, according to Maya Bank Inc.
As such, one of the digital bank’s executives pointed out that the country’s financial inclusion progress should be measured beyond the accounts opened or transactions processed.
‘The question is no longer simply whether Filipinos have a financial account, but whether that account is making their lives better and more secure,’ Maya Head of Corporate Affairs Kristoffer Eduard M. Rada said during the recent Asean Tech Summit Manila.
‘The more important test is whether the infrastructure helps people build savings, access affordable credit, grow a business or cope with an emergency,’ the official of the digital bank said.
According to the digital bank, formal account ownership in the country has ‘more than doubled’ over the past decade, rising from 22 percent in 2015 to around 50 percent in 2025.
Despite the significant growth in account ownership, Maya said in its statement: ‘Many Filipinos still use their accounts mainly for transactions and remain underserved by formal savings and credit products.’
Rada said national payment rails, digital identity, improving credit information and the digital banking framework of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) have laid ‘important foundations.’
These systems, however, still need to be ‘strengthened and sustained,’ he asserted.
Nonetheless, Rada said, digital payments can help by giving financial institutions a ‘better understanding’ of consumers and businesses with little or no traditional credit history.
‘Used responsibly and with the proper safeguards, everyday financial activity can provide useful signals about how people and businesses manage money,’ a document issued by Maya read.
The Asean Tech Summit Manila was held weeks after banks and financial institutions started slashing digital fund transfer fees.
The BSP is hoping the share of digital payments will corner at least 70 percent of total retail transactions by 2028.
In July last year, the central bank reported that the share of digital payments to total monthly retail transactions rose to 57.4 percent in terms of volume and 59 percent in terms of value in 2024, data from the BSP showed.
Based on the Philippine Development Plan, the baseline-at 30.3 percent in 2021-should increase to 50 percent in 2023; 52 percent to 54 percent in 2024; 54 percent to 58 percent in 2025; 56 percent to 62 percent in 2026; 58 percent to 66 percent in 2027; and 60 percent to 70 percent in 2028.