Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has sweetened its suite of deposit product offerings for overseas Filipinos, collectively responsible for about $2.3 billion in monthly foreign exchange inflows to the Philippine economy.
BPI has launched a new product called BPI Pamana Padala, which bundled deposits with free insurance. Another new offering, BPI Padala Moneyger, waives the minimum maintaining balance for active deposit accounts of those who receive remittances at least four times a year.
Apart from allowing overseas Filipinos to electronically transfer funds directly to the BPI accounts of their loved ones, BPI Pamana Padala account carries a unique feature: The remittance continuation plan which provides free 90-day personal accident insurance of P100,000 and life insurance coverage of up to P300,000.
“Overseas workers all strive to give their loved ones back home a bright future. They are our modern-day heroes who take risks to provide for their families. We also understand that despite their increased ability to financially provide for the family, OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) have to live with the nagging question whether their families will be able to take care of themselves should anything unfortunate happen to them,” Simon Paterno, BPI executive vice president and segment head of financial products and alternative channels, said in a statement.
“To address these concerns, we launched BPI Pamana Padala, which not only gives the convenience of transferring funds anytime and anywhere, but also comes with a back-up plan for the peace of mind of the OFW. Through this, we hope to give the protection that OFWs need and safeguard the future of their families,” Paterno added.
Through its free remittance continuation benefit, the overseas Filipino will get a free life insurance coverage of up to P300,000. The overseas Filipino will be entitled to this as soon as there are four remittances to the Pamana Padala account within a 12-month period.
On the other hand, BPI Padala Moneyger was specially designed for those who receive remittances from abroad.
With BPI Padala Moneyger, beneficiaries are now the managers of the remittance sent. With this, beneficiaries have a safe, secure and efficient way of receiving the remittance. The account holder can use BPI’s electronic banking services such as 24/7 online banking and ATMs to pay bills and transfer funds. BPI Padala Moneyger has no maintaining balance as long as there are four remittances made to the account in a year.
Money sent home by overseas Filipinos through banks reached $28.1 billion last year, up by 4.3 percent from the previous year, based on data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
The bulk of cash remittances for the year came from the US, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Japan, United Kingdom, Qatar, Kuwait, Germany and Hong Kong, accounting for 80.1 percent of the total.