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Philippines: Deposits up 8.1% in end-August
MANILA, Philippines — More Filipinos are still opting to keep their money in banks as deposits grew by 8.1 percent to P12.1 trillion as of end- August this year, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
In a report, the BSP said the banking industry’s deposit base consisted of P5.98 trillion in savings deposits, P4.02 trillion in demand deposits and P2.13 trillion in time deposits.
“Savings deposits remains the primary source of funds for the banking system,” the central bank said.
The BSP said foreign currency deposits owned by residents also inched up by 2.5 percent to P2.1 trillion as of end-August.
As a result, the total assets of Philippine banks increased by 7.3 percent to P20.6 trillion as of end-August from P19.2 trillion in the same period last year.
According to the BSP, the banking system assets and deposits continued to grow despite the impact of the pandemic.
“The Philippine banking system exhibited resilience and stability as the country’s economic activities and financial transactions continued to recover from the disruption caused by the pandemic and quarantine measures,” the central bank said.
As part of its COVID response measures, the Monetary Board slashed interest rates by 200 basis points, bringing the benchmark rate to an all-time low of two percent. It also reduced the reserve requirement ratio to free up more funds for lending.
The measures to cushion the impact of COVID on the economy helped unleash P2.23 trillion into the financial system to boost economic activities.
In terms of the number of banks, the BSP said head offices declined to 517 in end-September from 523 in end-June due to the continued consolidation of banks and the closure of weak players.
On the other hand, the number of branches increased to 13,158 offices as of end-September from 13,126 offices in end-June this year.
Roberto Tan, president and chief executive officer at the state-run Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) earlier said the current deposit data augurs well for depositor confidence in the Philippine banking system even with the pandemic as backdrop.
“We are optimistic that the depositing public will continue trusting banks and for bank deposits to sustain their steady growth to help fuel the economy. The PDIC, as a financial safety net, will always remain committed to its pursuit of depositor protection and in promoting financial stability in the country through responsive and effective services,” Tan said.
As of end-March, the PDIC had fully insured 96.7 percent or 78.2 million of the 80.9 million total deposit accounts maintained in 528 banks nationwide. This represented an increase of 6.8 percent or five million fully insured deposit accounts compared to the 73.3 million deposit accounts recorded in the same period in 2020.
Source: https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/11/02/2138280/deposits-81-end-august