ROUNDUP Finance groups form organization

To have an interconnected electronic retail payment system, the country’s financial institutions have formed an organization that will assist the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in implementing the initiatives for the National Retail Payment System (NRPS).

Called the Philippine Payments Management, Inc. (PPMI), this newly organized body is the product of a mutual agreement between the BSP and the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) to create a shared clearing and settlements system for the Philippine financial system.

PPMI was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Aug. 30 to support the NRPS Policy Framework of the BSP, which was launched in December 2015.

“PPMI will organize direct clearing participants into a self-governing body and assist the BSP in overseeing the development and operations of the retail payment system. It will help ensure that the country will soon have an interconnected electronic retail payment system,” said BAP president Nestor Tan, in a statement.

Competitiveness

The PPMI not only includes banks as the BSP targets to increase electronic retail payment transactions to twenty percent by 2020. PPMI will help ensure that the playing field among financial service providers in the country is competitive and responsive to the needs of the consumers.

“With the advent of technology, the PPMI can help in recommending policies to the BSP and various agencies towards a more financially inclusive economic system for the Filipinos through cooperation and competition from various financial service providers,” Tan said.

The NRPS is expected to help Filipinos access financial services and carry out financial transactions anytime and anywhere at a reasonable price through the use of innovative technology that will enhance the safety, speed and convenience of delivering financial services by the financial service providers and of the availment of such services.

It is positioned to aid in the gradual transition of the Philippine financial industry from a cash-heavy to a cash-lite economy, benefiting various stakeholders by providing faster financial transaction processes and services in the Philippines.