BPI, DOT to come up with tourism project financing, provide services

MANILA, Philippines –The Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands and the Department of Tourism have teamed up on a four-pronged initiative to use and expand banking infrastructure to support the needs of the tourism industry.

BPI president Aurelio Montinola III announced in a press briefing late Wednesday that the four pillars of this “Banking on Tourism” program — designed to provide a holistic approach to tourism – were the following:

*  To extend DOT’s presence and accessibility through more than 800 branches of BPI here and abroad so tourists can obtain information, as well as provide currency exchange service.

*  To design affordable financing options or tapping into guarantee facilities for qualified tourism enterprises so that they can expand or upgrade their offerings in line with DOT’s accreditation standards;

*  To deploy more ATMs (automated teller machine) and Point of Sale terminals so tourists can transact, access their funds, and pay 24/7 when they travel to DOT priority areas; and,

*  To introduce innovative financial products for consumers like the DOT-BPI “More Fun” prepaid Visa Card.

“BPI and DOT are determined to make travel experience in the Philippines not only fun but truly seamless,” Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez said.

Jimenez noted that the 7.1 percent gross domestic product growth posted by the Philippines in the third quarter was the most significant rise relative to the rest of Southeast Asia in a long long time. “Finally, the Philippines is on a renaissance, a rebirth is at hand,” he said, adding that capacity and excellence would be crucial for the tourism industry to contribute more to this growth momentum.

The DOT-BPI More Fun Prepaid Visa card is envisioned to make traveling in the Philippines easier and stress-free by allowing customers to conveniently load their cards at any of the BPI electronic channels and receive instant discounts and perks and use the card worldwide where Visa is accepted. On top of this, cardholders can customize their prepaid card with their own “More Fun in the Philippines” image and tagline.  The load limit is P10,000.

“The spike in tourism is very beneficial for the Philippine economy – not only are Filipinos and foreigners seeing the very best that the country has to offer, but it has grown to become a significant factor in expanding the economy. We are very proud to work together with the Department of Tourism and BPI for this very special project,” said Visa country manager for The Philippines and Guam, Iain Jameson.

“We have always believed that private enterprise plays a key role in the Philippines’ development. Today, we are happy to once again assist in the realization of the government’s vision to spur tourism as a key anchor for economic development,” Montinola said.