The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) tightened its vetting procedures for top financial executives, ordering institutions to gather more granular personal data and secure explicit privacy waivers to weed out unqualified candidates from the banking system. Outlined in Circular No. 1236, the...
Frankfurt-based Deutsche Bank AG has called for a jumbo 50-basis-point (bp) interest rate hike on Thursday, arguing that a larger increase would tackle growing price pressures head-on and avoid the need for more drastic tightening later. In a June 12 commentary, Deutsche Bank wrote that the Bangko...
Philippine bond yields posted one of the largest increases in emerging East Asia in recent months as the war in the Middle East fueled inflation, prompted tighter monetary policy, and heightened investor concerns over the country’s economic vulnerabilities, according to the Asian Development Bank...
De La Salle University (DLSU) economists have lowered their 2026 economic growth forecast anew, warning that mounting global and domestic shocks could leave the Philippine economy posting its slowest post-pandemic expansion this year. In their latest report on the Philippine economy for June 2026...
British banking giant Barclays said dovish members of the Monetary Board (MB) will likely support a less aggressive policy stance amid signs of cooling inflation, adding that monetary authorities may reverse their tightening cycle by 2027 to buoy a slowing economy. “With the May inflation print...
Money sent home by overseas Filipinos (OFs) fell to $2.72 billion in April, dropping from the $2.87 billion recorded in March to hit its lowest level since May last year, as tighter budgets constrained cash transfers. According to the latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) released...
Stubborn inflation is forcing the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to seriously consider higher borrowing costs, a move that threatens to worsen the sharp economic slowdown already hitting the country. Since the BSP delivered a quarter-point hike to 4.5 percent in April, calls for further...
To complement its enhanced credit exposure reporting and credit management system, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is expanding access to credit information, allowing individual and corporate borrowers to view their own credit data upon identity verification. This initiative is part of a...
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has prohibited virtual asset service providers (VASPs) from trading privacy coins—cryptocurrencies designed to conceal transaction details—to ensure traceability and transparency in the financial system. Under BSP Memorandum No. 23-2026, the central bank...
The Philippines’ outstanding external debt fell to a one-year low at the end of March as international lenders pulled back amid tighter global financing conditions and shifting investor sentiment. Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that total foreign obligations decreased by...
Philippine banks’ exposure to real estate lending remained near multi-year lows in the first quarter of 2026, as domestic lenders maintained a cautious approach to the property market while focusing on other growth areas. According to the latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP),...
Net inflows of brick-and-mortar foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Philippines declined by 17 percent to $1.72 billion in the first quarter of 2026 from $2.07 billion in the same period in 2025, as global uncertainty weighed on investor sentiment and prompted caution. The first-quarter FDI...
