PH on track with digital payments goal; online transfers up on lower fees
The way business is done has changed dramatically due to technology. Virtual transfers made possible by smartphone applications have replaced actual transfers made with cash and cheques. As early as 2000, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) allowed banks to engage in electronic banking to improve financial access.
The BSP has reported that digital payments accounted for 64.7% of total retail payments in the Philippines in 2025, hitting its target for the year. The BSP stated on Aug. 17 that the latest figure increased from the 57.4% share recorded a year earlier, as consumers and businesses continued to shift toward faster electronic transactions.
To boot, the latest figure falls within the 60% to 70% target set under the Philippine Development Plan for 2023-2028, the central bank said. Furthermore, data showed that digital payment accounts increased by 69.4%, and merchant locations or business outlets that accept digital payments rose by 36.3%, supporting the growth.
BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said: “The BSP continues to work closely with industry and government partners to expand digital payments to benefit more Filipinos and the economy as a whole.” He added: “A lot of the growth is due to our insistence on interoperability, ensuring that a growing number of businesses and service providers are on one system.”
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Digital fund transfer transactions surge
Meanwhile, the BSP said digital fund transfer transactions have climbed between 10% and 50% since banks and e-wallet providers cut their transfer fees, offering what the central bank described as a potential “second wind” for financial inclusion after progress showed signs of plateauing.
BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan said in July 2026, the central bank would conduct a more comprehensive assessment of transaction volumes by the end of the month. But he noted that preliminary reports from banks and other financial institutions point to a sharp increase in digital transfers following the fee cuts.
Tangonan also said banks had been signing up new customers after the central bank required supervised financial institutions to accept the national ID as sufficient proof of identity when opening deposit and transaction accounts.
“We noted that the growth of the digital payments year-on-year has more or less approached a plateau,” he said. “We need a second wind in order to propel the greater usage of digital payments, especially to those who are still non-users,” he added.
Under BSP Circular No. 1238, banks and other BSP-supervised financial institutions must ensure that fees for person-to-person digital fund transfers between accounts held at different institutions do not materially differ from those charged for transfers between accounts within the same institution.
References: Philippines hits digital payments goal – BSP
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