Bank urges Peza locators to digitize amid lockdown
Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) said that economic zone locators are seeking more digital banking tools to adjust and cope during the lockdown.
Juan Carlos L. Syquia, BPI’S corporate banking head, said that employing digital platforms will make the Philippine Economic Zone authority (Peza) locators and companies more equipped to not only survive the current crisis but to grow as will.
“While much of our country’s economic activity is centered in the capital, the lockdowns have brought the importance of businesses and manufacturing bases in our special economic zones in sharp focus,” Syquia said. “now, digital capabilities can open new frontiers for business and level up clients’ and partners’ customer experience.”
He said that using such platforms would help the firms to stay at the forefront.
Syquia pointed out digital banking has become crucial to Peza locators amid lockdown measures and limited workforce, adding that demand for such increased for technology-dependent industries during the community quarantine period. These include business process outsourcing, manufacturing and aviation, BPI said.
“Concerns include getting bank transactions done with minimal visibility and having available funds to bridge payments to suppliers and employees’ salaries while waiting for collections disrupted by the pandemic,” BPI Transaction Services Division Head ana Maria C. Sison said.
Sison explained that some locators are operating on work-fromhome arrangements, shifting schedules and with 50 percent to 70 percent of the workforce onsite.
She explained that inquiries about Bizlink have increased since the beginning of lockdown. It is an online one-stop shop for digital collections, account management and disbursements.
“Customer inquiries for digital disbursement solutions have increased since the start of the ECQ [enhanced community quarantine] and have resulted to a high success ratio of enrollments,” she said.
Earlier this month, BPI introduced new digital financial solutions that businesses can employ to innovate and cope with consumer behavior changes during this pandemic. These include improving cash management platforms, enhancing customer-centric functionalities, loading in-app e-wallets and providing website-integrated payment systems.
Syquia said that online payments—which have become more prevalent now—help businesses to recover losses from physical stores, shifting to online channels to generate sales. In addition, he said that using integrated payment systems can trim operational costs, minimize risks of pilferage and expand payment modes, among others.
Tyrone Jasper C. Piad