CEO Insights Magazine

The financial ecosystem in the Philippines is at an interesting juncture with a significant transformation on the horizon. Home to 11.73 crore (2023) people, the country faces unique challenges. Technology and innovation hold the key to repurposing its economic trajectory. For instance, the Philippines’s bankable population is only 56 percent. The country needs a script similar to India's. As Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi took oath in 2014, one of the first announcements of his cabinet was “Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana” (PMJDY)—a National Mission on Financial Inclusion which has an integrated approach to ensure comprehensive financial inclusion by ensuring banking services to all households in the country. The result? To date, 53.13 crore new (PMJDY) accounts have been opened.

However, PMJDY was only a small step toward bringing digital banking into the country. India subsequently forced digital transactions in the country by demonetizing Rs.1000 and Rs.500currency, constituting around 86 percent of the total currency under circulation. This led to the widespread adoption of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which took India to the top of the global digital transactions index. Today, India does more digital transactions than the US, China, and Europe combined.

The Philippines might have an easier route to achieve such a level of financial inclusion since the country has the highest number of regular users of online financial services in the world, according to a report. It is said that 91.3 percent of Filipino internet users aged 16 years old and higher use banking, investment or insurance websites or apps each month. It’s time to capitalize on this trend and widen the horizons of financial inclusion. In this special issue, we have curated stories of a handful of leaders who endeavor to take the Philippines’ financial services industry to its future.

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