Central bank renews push to ease deposit secrecy laws

Photo courtesy of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Facebook Page

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is rebuilding a push for a law that would ease the secrecy of bank accounts, mainly aimed at erring insiders, as well as other bills that would bolster the fight against financial crimes.

The BSP’s general counsel, Elmore Capule, last week told the House of Representatives committee on banks and financial intermediaries that currently, only the Philippines has bank secrecy laws that constrain prudential supervision.

Capule, who is also senior assistant governor at the BSP, was referring to the regulation and monitoring of the banking system to ensure its safety and soundness.

The BSP, when it was still named Central Bank of the Philippines, was granted in 1981 the authority to look into or examine bank deposit accounts when authorized by the Monetary Board (MB), its highest policy making body.

“The current laws on secrecy of bank deposits restrict the depth of information and records that the BSP can look into,” Capule said.

“BSP recommends amendments to the secrecy of bank deposits law to be limited within the confines of BSP’s banking supervision and its investigation of banks” that the MB has ordered closed, he said. INQ