Nog geen 1/3 heeft bank account

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MANILA — More Filipinos are now bank account holders, with the growth higher among the low-income and less educated segments, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

The BSP estimates that over 3 million new accounts were opened between 2011 and 2014 , based on data from the World Bank Global Findex.

The Global Findex, which is considered the world's most comprehensive database on financial inclusion, showed that 31.3 percent of Filipino adults own a formal account in 2014, higher than the 26.6 percent reported in the 2011 Findex.

Formal account is defined as an account held in financial institutions such as banks, cooperatives or microfinance institutions and can be a mobile money account as well. Such account can be used to save money and send or receive payments and remittance.

The report said the percentage of the poorest 40 percent of Filipino adults who own a formal account increased to 17.8 percent in 2014 from 10.7 percent in 2011.

Account ownership in the richest 60 percent, on the other hand, increased by only 3.4 percentage points to 40.6 percent in 2014.

"These gains are a result of continuing efforts in bringing the financial system closer to the people, especially to the disadvantaged segments," the BSP said in a statement on Tuesday.

Compared to ASEAN countries, however, the Philippines is still lagging behind in financial inclusion with Malaysia having 81 percent of its adults with accounts; Thailand with 78 percent; and Indonesia with 36 percent.

The BSP defines financial inclusion as a state wherein there is effective access to a wide range of financial services for all Filipinos.

According to the study, the percentage of those who borrowed from family and friends in the past 12 months also increased to 48.7 percent in 2014 from 39 percent in 2011.

"The Philippines is also one of the countries in the world where more than 10 percent of adults borrow money from private informal lenders," the BSP said.

Only 4.2 percent of Filipino adults, however, have a mobile money account while 3.5 percent used the internet to pay bills or make purchases. For domestic remittance, use of money transfer operators (MTOs) is more prevalent than sending or receiving remittances via banks or mobile phone.

Around 71 percent of Filipino adults who reported sending remittance and 58 percent of those who received remittance said they used MTOs.

BSP data showed there are 10,315 banks compared to 15,443 MTOs in 2014.

MTOs include pawnshops with remittance business, remittance agents, and money changers offering remittance services.