Sen. Imee Marcos slams “token” suspension of bank fees

SENATOR Imee Marcos last week slammed what she described as the “token suspension” of fees that banks and financial technology (fintech) companies plan to implement this month of October, saying it must be extended until the Covid-19 pandemic clearly subsides.

Marcos, who chairs the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs, said that suspending transaction fees until the latter half of next year, when a vaccine could be available, will make a real difference in promoting the growth of small businesses, especially those doing business online.

“We made a big push with the help of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to give a 60-day debt moratorium to the public, only to be offset by new charges,” Marcos explained.

“Those who were gainfully employed have been forced to find an alternative means of livelihood online.

“Let’s promote the growth of small businesses during this crisis,” Marcos said.

She further warned that for banks to impose more fees would also affect the consumers.

Marcos made her pitch after learning that banks and and popular fintech companies like ‘Gcash’ and ‘PayMaya’ had planned to impose new fees this October but suspended these to November or until yearend.

Among the fees that Marcos wants postponed longer are service charges of 15 pesos for money transfers, 20 pesos for over-the-counter transactions and for cash withdrawals via Mastercard, and fintech fees of 1 percent to 2 percent on cash-in and over-the-counter transactions of P8,000 and above.

Owners of small online businesses that have barely started have complained that the sudden introduction of fees makes it more difficult for them to cope with the economic crisis.

Some 75,000 online businesses are registered in the country and use the services of almost 200 fintech companies that deal in money lending, bill payments, digital wallets, and remittances.

“Banks and fintech companies can certainly afford to postpone new fees for a longer period. Digital payment systems will become even more popular and profitable due to limited public mobility during the pandemic,” Marcos pointed out further.

In 2019, before the pandemic, e-money transactions already registered 36 pecent growth valued at P760 billion, according to a Fintech News Philippines report.

The same report said the spike in e-money transactions also owes to the fact that only 29 percent of Filipino adults maintain bank accounts.