Banking & Finance

By Jerry Maglunog Local money changers mostly accept only four currencies and gift certificates (GCs) of a popular mall chain because these are the notes that have several users. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the foreign-exchange shops do not violate any provision in their license in the purchase of popular gift checks.

Delegates to the Regional Social Dialogue Conference, held recently in Manila, have drawn up recommendations in pursuit of an “inclusive, stable, and sustainable Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) with an inclusive, stable and sustainable Asean financial structure.”

The Philippines is not exempt from economic setbacks as a result of global difficulties, such as the Greek debt crisis, but it remains attractive to portfolio investors, as shown by the volume of foreign portfolio investments.

The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) recently signed the National Evaluation Policy Framework that calls for the purposive conduct of independent evaluation of government programs and projects.

By Jerry Maglunog Microinsurance aims to provide insurance to people in the lower echelons of society. It is a largely undeveloped market, however, as in the Philippines, it is estimated that not more than 10 percent of the country’s population are insured, moreso with the marginalized members of society.

By Riza Lozada Two years after the Sin Tax Law was enacted, discrepancies on its use, primarily for the local health sector, were found.

Fitch Ratings is confident that local banks would be able to meet new capital requirements following the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) announcement that it has identified domestic systemically important banks (D-SIB).

By Jerry Maglunog As the integration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) is almost here, another proposal that is facing a lot of scrutiny is the single currency similar to the euro in Europe.

By Jerry Maglunog No less than the queen of one of the world’s earliest monarchies has cited the effective national strategy for financial inclusion of the Philippines.

By Luis Leoncio The Philippines’ financial sector has a lot of catching up to do to improve its competitiveness and be on a par with the leading members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), according to state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).