Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. said Saturday, July 20, that the passage of Republic Act No. 12010 or the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA) will give the central bank more teeth in protecting financial consumers.
AFASA is a law that will curb and combat financial cybercrimes and enable the BSP to safeguard financial consumers’ rights and interests by examining suspicious financial accounts. While the new law has limited authority, it will allow the BSP to examine and investigate bank accounts, e-wallets, and other financial accounts that are involved in prohibited acts.
“We express our full support for the new anti-financial account scamming law, said Remolona. “This will help us strengthen consumer protection and foster trust and confidence in the Philippine financial system,” he added.
The AFASA prohibits and punishes financial crimes, such as acting as money mules, performing social engineering schemes, and committing economic sabotage.
“The law also authorizes the BSP to investigate cases involving violations of the law, apply for cybercrime warrants and orders, and request the assistance of the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police in the investigation of cases,” said the BSP.
It added that “responsible institutions are also given the authority to hold disputed funds in financial accounts under certain conditions, as well as initiate a coordinated verification process to validate the disputed transactions.”
“Moreover, AFASA imposes responsibilities on BSP-supervised institutions to employ adequate risk and fraud management systems to ensure that their client’s financial accounts are protected,” the BSP noted.
Meanwhile, the BSP said all government agencies, banks, covered financial institutions, the private sector, and other stakeholders “are mandated to establish a cooperative mechanism to ensure effective prosecution of cases and enforcement of the law.”
“The AFASA is in line with the BSP’s goals of promoting a strong financial system and an efficient, safe, and secure digital payments ecosystem that supports the diverse needs and capabilities of individuals and firms,” it added.
Remolona earlier said that two important pieces of legislation—the AFASA and the amendments to the Bank Secrecy Law—need to be removed from the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) “gray list” as soon as possible.
The Philippines has been one of the jurisdictions under the global anti-money laundering watchdog’s gray list since June 2021. As a watchlisted country, the Philippines is subject to increased monitoring and is required to work with the FATF actively. Failure to be removed from the gray list will have an impact on the country’s financial reputation on a global scale.
Remolona said on July 8 that the Philippines is on track to exit the gray list by January next year.
He said that by October, the BSP and the Anti-Money Laundering Council should have already completed the 18 action items that FATF has required the country to implement to be delisted from the gray list.