Rural banks now more potent to serve rural folk

Rural banking as an industry is now leaner and likely more potent as agents of change and financial empowerment in the countryside, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Gov. Amando M. Tetangco Jr. said Monday. Mergers and consolidation have reduced the number of Philippine rural banks by 4 percent to 631 as of Dec. 31 but the industry’s branch network, which dominate countryside banking, has grown by 45 percent to 1,794. “As a sector, rural banks continue to hold the lion’s share of the banking industry’s network in the countryside," Tetangco said at the rural bankers' 57th Annual National Convention at the Sofitel Hotel in Pasay City. He cited the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines for supporting the program of financial inclusion, or the idea of extending full financial services, to as many Filipinos as possible. Filipinos in the countryside used to travel to urban areas to avail themselves of financial and banking services, risking life and limb and spending considerable time and money in the process, Tetangco said. But with policy changes, even in areas where banks could not be physically present, mobile banking services can now be extended, he observed. “Through rural banks, therefore, we expect that more unserved and underserved Filipinos will gain access to responsible and dependable financial services. It can be a simple savings account, a time deposit, an efficient way to pay bills, an insurance product, a microfinance loan, or even just a safe channel to send and receive money," Tetangco said. VS, GMANews.TV