The latest “State of Financial Inclusion in the Philippines” report of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas revealed the number of deposit accounts in the country has increased by 6.8 percent to 57.1 million in 2017 from 53.5 million in 2016, on account of BSP’s efforts to grow banking offices nationwide and encourage more people to open bank accounts.
To further encourage more to be “banked,” Philippine Savings Bank (PSBank), the thrift banking arm of the Metrobank Group, through its “Good to Know!” campaign, shares a few benefits of owning a deposit account.
Money is safe in the bank
The obvious benefit of saving money in banks is that it eliminates the temptation of spending it (You don’t spend the money you can’t see). More importantly, the money put in a bank account is safe and secure as all Philippine banks are closely monitored, supervised, and regulated by the BSP.
Money in the bank is insured
All legitimate Philippine banks are members of the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation. PDIC is a government agency created to protect depositors in the event a bank fails and can’t refund their customers’ money. If for any reason, like rare cases where a bank closes, a bank is unable to reimburse its customers, the PDIC steps in, repaying each depositor up to P500,000.
There are various types of bank accounts
Banks have many types of savings accounts depending on a person’s needs. One can open an account with a passbook, an ATM card, a checkbook, or all three in a single account. There are also accounts for kids to help parents teach their children the value of saving at an early age.
Money earns interests in banks
Savings accounts in banks earn from 0.10 to 1.56 percent interest per year. On the other hand, money in a fixed-term deposit, such as PSBank Time Deposit, gets higher interest rates in as fast as 30 days for an initial placement of P10,000. Depositors could even get higher earnings when they place their money in investment instruments such as Money Market Funds.
Monitor transactions easily
Depositors can now access their accounts whenever they need to and wherever they are. They may inquire account balance and view transaction history using the bank’s ATMs here in the Philippines and abroad, or in the comfort of home or office through their online or mobile banking facilities.
Conveniently do other transactions
Banks offer other services that make life more convenient. These include paying bills, transferring funds, applying for loans online, among other things, using the bank’s electronic channel facilities. For instance, PSBank made the transfer of funds between PSBank and other banks easier via InstaPay and PesoNet, which are available through PSBank Online or the PSBank Mobile app. The two payment schemes under the National Retail Payment System allow seamless, secure, and reliable electronic fund transfers and payments at a minimal cost.