The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Jerry Maglunog
Alarmed by complaints that many banks’ automated teller machine (ATM) cards, including those of universal banks (unibanks), are not being honored outside the country, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said it will look into the international clearing connections between local banks and their foreign partners.
The BSP was informed recently that at least three unibanks, namely Bank of the Philippine Islands, Metrobank and LandBank of the Philippines, were rejected by banks in Papua New Guinea.
Only one unibank’s ATM, the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.’s, was accepted, but with a cross currency transaction charge of P225. The amount was over 10 times of the charge in the Philippines if the withdrawee used other ATM and not his bank’s.
BSP Deputy Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. said if the ATM card has a logo of any international clearing network it should dispense cash when used at any ATM machine abroad.
“For a local bank card to be accepted abroad, the bank has to be a member of an international clearing network. Depositors should check their bank’s membership and whether their card is activated for international use,” Espenilla said.
He encouraged depositors of banks that have their ATM cards denied for use abroad to formally complain to their banks.
“They should first complain with their issuer bank concerned to hear their explanation, if any,” Espenilla said. The BSP issues fines and sanctions against any bank found to have been remiss in their obligation to depositors.
Banks carry either a JCB, Cirrus, Union Pay or Visa logos.
According to the deputy governor, clients can formally file complaints against their banks for causing humility and inconvenience caused by queuing for too long but will not be recognized.
“The card should also contain the logo of international clearing network like Cirrus, JCB, Union Pay for it to be usable abroad,” the official added.
When it was reported to him that all the ATM cards of the four banks used had three of those logos, Espenilla asked: “Have they complained already? What did the banks say?”