BSP targets 1 million kids as depositors

Program aims to encourage more children to start the habit of saving Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas authorizes 12 banks to accept depositors and issue ATM cards in schools

THE BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas, in partnership with some 12 big banks in the country, is aiming to get one million kids to open their own savings account by yearend.

This was according to Bank Marketing Association of the Philippines (BMAP) president Miguel Angelo C. Villa-Real, who said some 600,000 kids aged 0 to 18 have already opened kiddie savings accounts.

“BSP set the one million target,” Villa-Real said in an interview Monday.

Participating banks include the Philippine National Bank, Banco de Oro, Veterans Bank, Bank of the Philippine Islands, Development Bank of the Philippines and East West Bank, among others.

These banks, he said, have also eased the requirements for child depositors.

Villa-Real said children below 18 years old will only have to present their birth certificate and school ID, and a minimum deposit amount of P100.

In line with BSP’s Project BRO (BSP Reaches Out), the banks were given permission by the central bank to accept depositors and issue ATM cards outside the bank premises, specifically in schools.

Project BRO is part of BSP’s Economic and Financial Learning (EFLP), a savings campaign for kids and teens from Grade 1 to Grade 10 across the country.

This new learning session, which was first launched in Davao City last July, forms part of the BSP’s efforts to foster the habit of saving early in the lives of Filipinos.

It features interactive lectures and discussions about the value of spending wisely, saving early, and saving in banks, BSP Cebu Acting Director Leonides Sumbi said.

After the session, the BSP will track the students’ saving habits by closely coordinating with teachers and school officials for the purpose of encouraging the youngsters to open and grow savings accounts in banks. The learning activity is in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) and the BMAP.

Last Monday, BSP officials went to Colegio dela Imaculada Concepcion while on Tuesday, they went to the Guadalupe Elementary School and to Ramon Duterte Memorial National High School in Cebu City to encourage students to start the habit of saving.