BSP: “Public investment in satellite communications may enable access to financial services almost universal.”
BSP — The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is calling for a higher public investment in satellite communications to upgrade and modernize the Philippines’ IT infrastructure.
During an ASEAN-5 central banks’ virtual discussion on cross-border payments, BSP Governor Felipe M. Medalla said that public investment in satellite communications “may enable access to financial services almost universal”.
This, as the Philippines pursues more digital payment streams and improve access to digital banking.
According to Medalla, the Philippine government could work with the private sector in order to “maximize the potential of and speed up access to e-money and phone-based banking services”.
Medalla also emphasized that involving private players and increasing public investment on the country’s information technology (IT) infrastructures will fasttrack the implementation of a multilateral cross-border payments connectivity.
Manila Bulletin reported that central bank governors shared their visions for the future of cross-border payments in the ASEAN region during the session on “Faster, Cheaper, More Transparent and More Inclusive Cross-Border Payment to Promote Regional Economic Recovery”, part of Indonesia Digital Economy and Finance Festival 2022.
Key aspects of establishing interoperability, opportunities for ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), and prospects for collaboration among authorities and market players were also discussed as well.
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For its part, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is currently in talks with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Bank Negara Malaysia (Central Bank of Malaysia) for bilateral linkages between the country’s InstaPay with Singapore’s PayNow and Malaysia’s DuitNow.
Based on the report, the BSP chief said that in the interoperability of cross-border payments, central banks should address the technical issue of aligning the features of different payment systems as well as the non-technical challenges.
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