Illustrative photo (Photo: adb.org) Hanoi (VNA) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on October 5 that it has approved a 300 million USD policy-based loan to support the Philippine government in creating a stronger institutional and policy environment to help expand Filipinos’ access to financial services.
According to the bank, the loan is within the framework of its Inclusive Finance Development Programme, Subprogramme 3, aims to support Phillipines’ reforms to expand financial inclusion in the country by improving the country’s financial infrastructure, including widening the digital financing ecosystem.
It also supports efforts to increase the capacity of financial service providers, including rural banks and nonbank financial institutions, to offer quality products and services accessible through various delivery channels.
According to the 2021 Global Findex Database, the number of Filipino adults holding an account with a financial institution or mobile money provider has risen from 34% of the population in 2017 to 51% 2021.
The Philippine government wants to raise the number of Filipinos holding an account with financial institutions or mobile money providers to 70% by 2024, aided by streamlined requirements with the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys), which was launched in 2020.
As of September 1, 2023, nearly 88% of the population had registered PhilSys./.
