Banks ordered to provide more detailed rates for deposits, loans

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Bank clients will soon have access to more detailed information about deposit and borrowing rates to help them make better decisions with their finances, the central bank said Thursday.

In a statement, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said its Monetary Board recently approved “enhancements” to the required reports on interest rates on loans and deposits being submitted by universal and commercial banks.

The enhanced structure requires greater granularity on the data reported that is expected to contribute to enhanced monitoring and analysis of the bank regulator as well as provide the public with more information in making decisions.

“These will provide consumers with more valuable information to compare costs and evaluate their needs based on the best loans and deposits products available to them,” BSP said.

“The enhanced structure of the report requires universal and commercial banks to disclose interest rates on actual loans granted and deposits generated classified as to product types, maturity period/terms, and size (of deposits) as of a given reference period,” the central bank added.

The information generated from these reports provides analytical support for policy decisions as well as assessment of interest rate risk exposure of the industry. Data on bank interest rates on loans and deposits are published on the BSP website on a regular basis.

The central bank said the compilation and publication of bank interest rates on loans and deposits are aligned with the international best practice and likewise supports its thrust to promote greater financial literacy, consumer protection, and market transparency in the industry.

Universal and commercial banks will have transitory period of one month which began Feb. 1, 2019 prior to full implementation of the enhanced reporting requirements on March 1, 2019. /kga