RCBC electronic fund transfers surge 281%
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) reported that electronic fund transfer (EFT) values initiated by its corporate clients has surged 281 percent to ₱63.17 billion as of end-May this year.
Based on data from the Yuchengco-led commercial bank, its EFT values for the same period last year amounted to ₱16.57 billion.
“The enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in March this year pushed EFT transactions further, with values amounting to ₱47.03 billion for the three-month period alone, higher compared to the pre-Covid-19 level of ₱16.14 billion which was for the months of January to February 2020,” said RCBC.
EFTs are the electronic or digital transfer of funds from one bank account to another, while manual transactions are settlements completed with the help of bank staff.
RCBC Senior Vice President for the Corporate Cash Management segment Enrique C. Buenaflor said that the ₱63.17 billion in transaction values were made via the bank’s online EFT platform which include Instapay, Pesonet, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), and the Philippine Domestic Dollar Transfer System (PDDTS).
He explained that, aside from the effects of the ECQ, this significant growth in RCBC’s EFT transactions can be attributed to the bank’s preparedness, foresight, and robust corporate online banking platform.
The bank’s Global Transaction Banking Group sent out email reminders to all its online clients the week prior to the ECQ, informing customers of alternative means to accomplish traditional check payments via the RCBC Corporate Online Banking.
“The result was a deluge of requests and subsequent usage of our electronic payment options. By end of May, the volumes were more than 8 times the value compared to full year 2019,” Buenaflor said.
In terms of sustaining the growth of EFT transactions, RCBC is working on providing even more digital funds management options to its corporate clients, both for payment and collections transactions.
Measures to upgrade the digital capability of the bank’s collections suite, partnering with RCBC Bankard on the promotion of online acquisition for credit card payments, and the development of a bulk check scanning service, are all in the works to provide a convenient and problem-free remote banking experience to its corporate customers.
“By continuously broadening and strengthening our digital solutions, we think we can sustain the gains for the rest of the year,” he added.