American financial services firm bullish on Phl growth

American banking and retail solutions provider Diebold Nixdorf is bullish on the continued growth potential of the Philippine banking industry given its huge unbanked population.

In a media briefing in Makati City yesterday, Julius Servando, country manager for the Philippines, said the company sees the continued growth of bank presence across the country particularly in the provincial areas.

“We continue to support banks as they expand to reach more customers in non-urban areas. Our presence here also helps retailers, both new and established, to enter the Philippines market with our automation, omnichannel and life cycle management solutions," Servando said during the press briefing of the company's 15th year anniversary in the Philippines in The Peninsula Manila Wednesday.

The company started in the Philippines in 2003 and has been providing integrated solutions to its banking and retail customers here.

With a population of over 105 million people, Diebold believes the Philippines has huge growth potential in the banking sector where 70 percent of households do not have bank accounts. The number of bank branches continues to grow as banks aim to provide services and banking facilities in this underbanked region.

According to strategic research and consulting firm RBR, the total number of ATMs in the country will grow by around 48 percent to 29,400 terminals by the end of 2022.

Banks are also expanding services beyond major cities to more rural areas including remote islands and provinces.

As part of branch transformation, banks continue to educate their customers on using self-service terminals so tellers can focus on providing more services and products.

The company provides selfservice banking technology in the Philippines with 58 percent share of the installed base of ATMs (automated teller machines).

With its large services base, Servando said the company is well positioned to support the industry's expansion in the country.

Diebold currently serves over 40 banking customers with more than 11,500 ATMs deployed nationwide.

In addition to its banking solutions, the US-based firm has 24 local and international retail customers in the Philippines. With over 15,000 EPOS (Electronic Point of Sale) systems installed, it is one of the largest EPOS suppliers in the country with approximately 13 percent market share.

With EPOS shipments expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 10 percent over the next four years, the firm is firmly positioned to provide its omni-channel software and services solutions for retailers looking for both an online and offline approach.

The US firm has a team of over 400 associates around the country, of which more than 300 work within services. Biswajit Jha, vice president and managing director for ASEAN, said the company is looking to continue to help its banking and retail customers drive innovation through technology and services.

"It has been important for us to work with the Philippines community to ensure that our solutions continuously evolve in order to meet the unique requirements of this market," he said.

Diebold is an innovation partner for nearly all of the world's top 100 financial institutions and a majority of the top 25 global retailers.

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