A new debit Mastercard was launched recently by the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) which will be available for free for clients who open an account through bank branches and also for existing clients whose existing cards are about to expire or are due for renewal, according to a business news report by GMA Network.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the report of GMA News. Some parts in boldface…
The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has launched a new debit Mastercard made from 100% recycled PVC-free plastic, as the Ayala-led lender boosts its sustainable banking efforts.
The new card will be available for free for clients who open an account through the bank’s branches and for existing clients with cards nearing expiry or are already due for renewal. Clients who switch to the new card will be charged a P200 replacement fee.
The card—which features a curved notch at the bottom left corner—can be requested through the BPI app or BPI Online, and may be available for pickup at the preferred branch.
“Reimagining the BPI Debit Mastercard to become an eco-friendly card is a testament to BPI’s commitment to its values of sustainability and innovation,” BPI Mass Retail head Jenny Lacerna said in an emailed statement.
“By using sustainable materials for our card, we hope to make sustainable behavior the default option for everyone,” she added.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? What is your observation about the new debit card launched by BPI? If you are an existing BPI account holder, do you intend to request for the new card?
The 3rd quarter growth of only 4% the Philippines achieved has been on people’s minds a lot lately. As such, the country is at risk of falling behind its neighbors in Southeast Asia in terms of economic growth and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, according to a BusinessWorld news report.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news report of BusinessWorld. Some parts in boldface…
The Philippine economy is at risk of further falling behind its Southeast Asian neighbors, an economist said, noting it may take two years to catch up with Vietnam and up to 70 years to catch up with Singapore.
“(T)he Philippines could find itself lagging behind if alleged public spending issues continue to divert attention and resources away from the structural reforms needed to accelerate economic development,” Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Lead Economist Emilio S. Neri, Jr. said in a commentary on Wednesday.
In the third quarter, Philippine gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4%, its slowest pace in over four years amid slower household and public infrastructure spending as the flood control scandal dampened investor and con-sumer sentiment.
In the nine months to September, GDP growth averaged 5%, putting the government’s 5.5%-6.5% full-year growth target further out of reach.
“The Philippine economy is growing, but not enough to close the economic gap with other countries,” Mr. Neri said.
He noted the Philippine GDP per capita is lower compared with other economies in the region. Citing International Monetary Fund (IMF) data, he said the Philippines’ GDP per capita stood at $4,078 in 2024.
“At the current growth rate, it would take the Philippines two years to catch up with the GDP per capita of Vietnam, 4 years with Indonesia, 14 years with Thailand, 26 years with Malaysia, and 70 years with Singapore, assuming their incomes remain stagnant. In reality, their GDP per capita continues to grow, which means the gap could persist or even widen,” Mr. Neri said.
The Philippines lagged behind Singapore which had a GDP per capita of $90,674 in 2024, followed by South Korea ($36,128), Japan ($32,498), China ($13,312), Malaysia ($12,540), Thailand ($7,491), Indonesia ($4,958) and Vietnam ($4,535).
“Before the pandemic, the Philippines had a higher GDP per capita than Vietnam, but has since been overtaken. At current trends, it would take the Philippines two years to catch up with Vietnam, but that gap could increase to 13 years by 2044,” Mr. Neri said.
The BPI economist said the Philippines needs structural reforms to accelerate growth in order to close the widening gap with its neighbors.
“The current economic model of the country is not enough, as shown by the country’s inability to grow faster than 6% in recent years,” he said.
Mr. Neri said the economy has been “too reliant” on consumer spending, driven by overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittances and the business process outsourcing industry.
“There is a need to diversify its sources of growth. The economy must improve in terms of production, especially in agriculture and manufacturing, as they will allow the economy to be more self-sufficient and to reach foreign markets. These industries have been critical to Vietnam’s success and could play a similar role for the Philippines,” he said.
However, Mr. Neri said implementing these reforms will be hard if the government lacks focus.
“Public spending issues divert fiscal resources and policymaking focus away from long-term development priorities. Efforts to strengthen safeguards against potential issues in government spending are essential, enabling the country to work on structural reforms that could improve the economy,” he said.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? What do you think should the government do to accelerate economic growth?
In case you missed the news, direct loading to e-wallet services GCash and Maya using the app of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has been disabled recently as the bank made changes, according to a Manila Bulletin news report.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news reported of Manila Bulletin. Some parts in boldface…
The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is phasing out its direct e-wallet loading feature for GCash and Maya on Feb. 13, 2025.
After this date, BPI customers will no longer be able to use the “Load E-Wallet” option within the BPI mobile app to fund their GCash or Maya accounts.
Instead, BPI is advising users to transfer funds via InstaPay and PesoNet using the “Transfer to other banks” function. Within this feature, customers can select “G-Xchange” for GCash or “Maya Philippines Inc/Maya Wallet” for Maya.
BPI explained that this shift is in line with Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Circular 980, which outlines the National Retail Payment System Framework, and complies with recommendations from the Philippine Payments Management, Inc. (PPMI) as detailed in Advisory No. 2024-1104-020.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? If you are a BPI user who also has a GCash or Maya account, were you deeply affected by the recent changes? Do you find transferring money from BPI to an e-wallet service more inconvenient to do today?
Was there anyone in your local community who got scammed many times last year? Based on the findings of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), cybercrime complaints more than tripled in 2024 and victims lost almost P200 million as well, according to a news article by the Philippine News Agency (PNA).
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news article of the PNA. Some parts in boldface…
The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) on Friday said there were a total of 10,004 cybercrime complaints filed with their office in 2024, more than three times the 3,317 complaints in 2023.
In a statement Friday, CICC Executive Director Undersecretary Alexander Ramos said the total amount lost by cybercrime victims reached almost PHP198 million last year alone.
He attributed the exponential increase in the number of complaints to the growing awareness of the public on cybercrimes and their willingness to report.
“In previous years, people were not aware that they were being scammed and many were not also aware of where to file their complaints,” Ramos said.
Of the total, around 3,534 complaints, or 35 percent were consumer fraud, these include non-delivery of goods or services and fake advertisements.
On the other hand, there were 3,242 online fraud complaints, or 32 percent of the total. This includes financial fraud, impersonation, job scams, investment scams, and love scams.
Other types of complaints were unsolicited communication, illegal access, identity theft, sexual cybercrimes, phishing, and cyberlibel.
He added that GCash was the top wallet used by victims of consumer fraud, online fraud, and phishing, with a total loss of PHP76.49 million to its users.
Other financial platforms used by victims were BPI with PHP28.47 million losses, GoTyme with PHP15.38 million, and PayMaya with PHP13.99 million.
He called on victims of scams to call the government’s toll-free hotline at 1326.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Were you scammed in 2024? Do you think that banks and e-wallet companies should enhance security of their respective apps to protect their users from the cyber criminals and scammers? Do you personally know anyone who lost a lot of money because he or she got scammed while using GCash?
For the lead economist of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), the economy of the Philippines will accelerate this year in connection to rising household consumption as well as other factors, according to a Philippine News Agency (PNA) news article.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news article of the PNA. Some parts in boldface…
Growth of the Philippine economy is expected to accelerate this year, driven by the continued expansion of household consumption, an economist from the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) said.
“We expect the Philippine economy to expand by 6.3% in 2025, outpacing the previous year’s performance, with household consumption remaining its biggest driver,” BPI lead economist Jun Neri said in a commentary released late Wednesday.
Neri earlier forecast a 6.1 percent economic growth for 2024.
Neri said factors sustaining household consumption growth such as remittance inflows, remained in place despite the economic slowdown in major economies.
“With aging populations abroad driving the demand for labor, the impact of headwinds on remittances like trade barriers and anti-immigration sentiment will likely be limited. Remittances also have a strong track record of stability and growth even in times of crisis, as seen during the pandemic,” he said.
Neri said the country’s low unemployment rate is also expected to support consumption.
“This should continue to drive the growth of household income and the expansion of the middle class,” he said.
Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that the unemployment rate further went down to 3.2 percent in November last year from 3.6 percent in November 2023.
Consumer spending, meanwhile, is expected to grow at a faster pace this year as inflation remains at a manageable level.
“This improvement will likely be most apparent in discretionary spending after a period of slower growth caused by high inflation, as consumers focused more on essentials,” said Neri.
Inflation will likely settle at 3.5 percent this year, well within the government’s 2 to 4 percent target, Neri said.
Meanwhile, he said the recent reduction in interest rates and banks’ reserve requirement ratio (RRR), will also help boost economic growth.
To recall, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reduced policy rates for a total of 75 basis points this year.
The BSP also reduced the RRR of universal and commercial banks and non-bank financial institutions with quasi-banking functions by 250 basis points.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Did you think the economy of the Philippines will be able to grow by at least 6.3% this year?
Recently, an economist predicted that the economy of the Philippines will keep growing above 6% this year and next year, according to a Philippine News Agency (PNA) news article.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the PNA news article. Some parts in boldface…
The Philippine economy is expected to remain one of the fastest growing economies in the region, with growth likely settling at above 6 percent for 2024 and 2025.
In his economic and market outlook released on Tuesday, BPI senior vice president and lead economist Emilio Neri Jr. said economic growth will likely hit 6.1 percent this year and further accelerate to 6.3 percent in 2025.
“The Philippine economy has been resilient despite significant headwinds like severe El Niño and devastating typhoons, still managing to grow by 6% in the first half of 2024,” Neri said.
“Looking ahead, the Philippine economy will likely continue to outperform in the region, supported by its strong consumer base,” he added.
Neri expects headline inflation to ease to 3.2 percent in 2024 and further decelerate to 2.8 percent in 2025.
“Inflation is expected to be more manageable in the coming year given the improving prospects of food supply. With El Niño now behind us and the potential increase in production, along with tariff reductions, rice may become more affordable,” he said.
Neri said lower inflation may help boost consumption in the coming year, while election-related spending could also further stimulate economic activity.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Do you think the economy of the Philippines has enough momentum to exceed the growth forecasts of the economists for 2024 and beyond? Do you think the Philippines can do a better job on attracting more foreign investors soon?
BPI Wealth – the wealth management arm of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) – will establish a new mutual fund to lure in young and tech-savvy investors, according to a Manila Bulletin business news report.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Manila Bulletin news report. Some parts in boldface…
Amid favorable conditions for long-term investments, the wealth-management arm of Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) will roll out before this year ends a new mutual fund eyeing young and tech-savvy investors.
BPI Wealth personal wealth head Irene Ang told a press briefing on Friday, October 18, that the forthcoming BPI Wealth Builder Multi-Asset Mutual Fund Inc. isexpected to be approved “soon” by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which regulates mutual funds, for it to be sold to the public.
This first-of-its-kind balanced, global-based and peso-subscription and -redemption fund aims to convince millennials and the Gen X generation in the country to invest and prepare for their retirement, Ang said.
Among the innovative and unique features of this mutual fund include availability for a minimum of only P1,000; accessibility on BPI’s online platforms and accredited channels to conveniently open an investment account, monitor investments, and receive cumulative rewards and benefits at no extra cost; as well as an automated and automatic top-up system allowing additional investments of at least P100 monthly.
Ang is optimistic that up to P1-billion investments in their upcoming newest mutual fund would be “easy.”
BPI Wealth president and chief executive officer (CEO) Maria Theresa D. Marcial noted that among their investors, those who onboarded via digital channels continued to engage more regularly than branch-opened accounts.
“We should push more into digital initiatives,” said Marcial, who is spearheading BPI’s “Wealth Wellness Month” this October to promote financial inclusion and literacy as well as opportunities for small investors.
Marcial disclosed that as of end-September, BPI Wealth’s assets under management (AUM) rose to a new high of P1.4 trillion, from P1.2 trillion in end-2023.
On top of the earlier goal of 20-percent AUM increase for this year, Marcial said a further 15-percent growth next year will be “reasonable.”
BPI Wealth targets P3 trillion in AUM by 2026.
Marcial cited that while mutual funds and other assets experienced a roller-coaster ride of ups and downs during the past three years due to global financial conditions, the clarity in the ongoing monetary policy easing here and abroad this year has improved prospects.
“We’re seeing markets becoming more buoyant, and fund managers are becoming more constructive across asset classes,” she said.
“Bonds are expected to do better, as interest rates go lower. And because interest rates are lower… so [in] equity we’re seeing some renewed interest,” she added.
Let me end this post by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Do you think BPI Wealth’s newest move makes a lot of sense with today’s economic environment? Do you think a lot of millennials are willing to engage in investments?
GCash, a very popular electronic wallet (e-wallet) here in the Philippines, will soon be charging a fee of P5 each time a user cashes in (loading money into his or her GCash account) via the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) or Union Bank of the Philippines, according to a business news story by the Philippine Star. For the newcomers reading this, GCash users can put money into their respective accounts in other ways such as doing it over-the-counter at recognized convenience stores, the cash-in kiosks and other types of businesses that accept GCash cash-in.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Philippine Star business news report. Some parts in boldface…
E-wallet giant GCash will start charging a convenience fee of P5 for every time a user cashes in from its major partners Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and Union Bank of the Philippines in the fourth quarter.
In an interview with reporters, GCash president and CEO Martha Sazon said the convenience fee remains to be one of the lowest compared to the transaction charges imposed by traditional banks that run as high as P25.
“As GCash continues to scale, we still subsidize most of the charges as well as heavily invest on upgrading our infrastructure and reinforcing security services,” Sazon said.
Sazon said GCash has to slap a convenience fee for cashing in to cover its rising costs. However, Sazon said the fee only reduces the subsidies that GCash pays to keep its financial services affordable.
“This also ensures that our operations will remain seamless for all customers. Even with this fee, we will continue to subsidize part of the operating cost for our cash-ins as we remain committed to keeping our services affordable to many Filipinos,” Sazon said.
Sazon is encouraging GCash customers to compute how much they have to spend for every time they load their accounts through BPI and Union Bank.
For instance, Sazon said a user can cash in P10,000 in one go rather than top up P500 in tranches to minimize getting charged P5 every time.
Users can add cash to their GCash platform by linking it into their bank accounts. Likewise, they can cash-in via convenience stores, dedicated machines, department stores, gas stations, sari-sari stores, among others.
Last week, GCash announced that it would waive for the rest of the year the transaction charges on merchants for payments accepted through QR Ph. The e-wallet leader expects that through this, micro, small and medium enterprises will book extra earnings from cashless transactions.
GCash offers merchants access to e-wallet with a limit of up to P500,000 per month, waiving the transaction fee of 1.5 percent for P100,000 in gross sales.
GCash is one of the largest finance apps in the Philippines with a nationwide presence in more than 1,600 billers.
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? If you are a GCash user who often loads money using the respective apps or systems of BPI and Union Bank, does the above business story discourage you a lot?
Like anyone else, I enjoy consuming ice cream especially when it is very well prepared, finely formulated, has a great mix of ingredients and delivers a really great taste. Here in the Philippines, there are these three major brands of ice cream that are often available around through the groceries, the convenience stores, the community store and the like. Frankly speaking, I have grown tired of the ice cream products of those three major brands.
Fortunately and thanks to the Lord, a great alternative was realized in October 2016 when Ice Cream House opened its branch along Presidents Avenue, Barangay BF Homes, Parañaque City. On my first-ever visit at Ice Cream House, I easily noticed their wide selection of ice cream products and frozen delights under the brand called Gold Delight. Subsequently, I revisited Ice Cream House BF Homes branch again and again taking home pints or half-gallons of their ice cream which are all delicious. Members of our household as well as some friends and guests all found Gold Delight ice cream tasty and nice.
The BF Homes branch of Ice Cream House unfortunately shut down as a result of the pandemic and the community quarantine that followed which brought down the economy. The same thing happened also to the Ice Cream House branch along CAA Road in Las Piñas City. Fortunately for ice cream enthusiasts of South Metro Manila, there is one vendor selling Gold Delight ice cream and frozen delights in Las Piñas City (call 0915-4606505) located across a certain college there. And here is the real deal on acquiring Gold Delight ice cream products – the Ice Cream House company is accepting orders online and they actually deliver the products to the customers! Visit their Facebook page to see the steps and details.
This brings me to the topic of this article. Thanks to the Ice Cream House company for fulfilling my orders and successfully delivering all the way from Quezon City to Alabang, my family enjoyed the Gold Delight ice cream in HGs and pints. For this article, the spotlight is on two notable flavors of Gold Delight ice cream – Coffee Crumble and Cocoflan.
Coffee Crumble
Coffee is very popular here in the Philippines, specifically in its hot form. Coffee also made its way into ice cream locally although there is not much variety of it. There is one particular major ice cream brand that has offered coffee crumble ice cream for a long time and I personally got tired of that. That being said, Gold Delight’s coffee crumble ice cream is so much better than that of the major brand!
Firstly, the coffee blended by Gold Delight alone has stronger flavor compared to that of the major brand. Secondly, there is a sufficient amount of chocolate chips which not only add to the already good coffee flavor, but also ensures crunches for each bite. In other words, the chocolate chips really add to the crumble factor of Gold Delight’s coffee crumble ice cream! Thirdly, the sweetness of it all is pretty satisfying to my taste. Gold Delight’s coffee crumble ice cream is very delicious and I highly recommend it!
Cocoflan
What is Cocoflan? Literally speaking, it is the combination coconut milk and the Philippine delicacy of leche flan. This is, in my opinion, the most unique ice cream ever made by the Ice Cream House company and the good news here is that it is very delicious.
For one thing, there is not enough ice cream products here in the Philippines that make good use of coconut milk. Coconut milk is unique with the way it is sourced and prepared, and has nutritional benefits. That being said, coconut milk gives Cocoflan a unique and nice flavor. Adding more flavor in the same ice cream are pieces of leche flan which are spread randomly from the top to the bottom. Cocoflan is not only very delicious, but also has a very unique taste that really makes it stand out among all ice cream being sold here in the Philippines. As such, it is highly recommended.
Conclusion
If you love ice cream with the taste of coffee or coconut milk or leche flan, or if you simply love very delicious ice cream regardless of brand, you should go for Gold Delight’s Coffee Crumble and its signature Cocoflan. Take note that these are just a few of the many flavors of ice cream that the Ice Cream House company is offering
If you are curious for more or if you really want to order Gold Delight ice cream from Ice Cream House, contact them at mobile phone number 09190091543 or visit them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/icecreamhouseph
Be aware that they are accepting orders through their Facebook page via FB Messenger and you can avail of their order form for you to fill up. Payments can be done by GCash, Pay Maya or bank transfer through BPI, BDO or PNB. Orders successfully processed can be delivered to you within 1 or 2 days.
If anyone of you reading this love ice cream, let me ask you the following key questions: What is your favorite flavor of ice cream right now? What do you look for in ice cream? When was the last time you switched from a major ice cream brand to a lesser-known ice cream brand? You may answer in the comments section below.
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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me at HavenorFantasy@twitter.com
If you want to prevent yourselves or your loved ones from becoming victims, then you should read what I encountered today (March 18, 2019).
This morning, coming from the direction of Festival Mall in Filinvest City, Muntinlupa City, I was about to enter the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) branch at the ground floor of the Insular Life Corporate Center along Commerce Avenue.
As I was preparing myself, a thin, dark-skinned young man wearing dark shorts, dark t-shirt and slippers called my attention from behind. He carried a light bag on his back.
So I looked back carefully and then he said “Sir, patulong po.” (meaning he needs my help) and showed me a noticeable handy sign (like a card) with words written on it emphasizing that he needs money to solve his problem. From that moment on, I figured out he was a beggar trying to manipulate me discreetly (he did not even open his palm to show begging).
I just ignored him and went inside BPI Insular Life branch to do my transaction at one of the ATMs (automatic teller machines). As the ATM I used was processing my transaction, I took a few peaks outside and noticed that the guy was still standing outside on the lookout for other people he could approach.
Right after I completed my ATM transaction, I took it upon myself to photograph him for this very article. I also figured out it was a rare chance of mine to find out if he was trying to scam people given his very discreet approach on asking for money.
So I walked outside with my smartphone and its camera ready. As he noticed me nearing him, he showed me again that sign and asked for money. Then as I pulled out my smartphone to photograph him, he quickly put his sign away and faced the other direction trying to hide his face.
This is the first shot I managed to take as he hid himself when he noticed my smartphone. The thing he is holding with his left hand is the sign/card with a written message to convince people to give him money for his “problem”. At this moment, he knew his discreet begging was exposed.
After taking the first photograph (the one right above), I still aimed my smartphone camera at him and I asked him to face me and challenged him to beg while being seen. He refused to do it and kept hiding himself by facing away from me.
Check out the pictures below.
By the time I took this picture, he was resisting and decided to keep facing away and hide the beggar’s sign. He refused to face me and beg knowing that he was exposed. His earlier courage of discreetly begging for money was gone.
The discreet beggar walking away.
As the discreet beggar walked away, I went back inside BPI Insular Life branch and alerted the security guard about the beggar.
The guard said he remembered seeing that beggar a few times from before begging within the Filinvest City spots. He also remembered that from time to time, adults like the one pictured would beg discreetly for money just outside their bank.
More notably, the security guard said that it is illegal for anyone to commit begging within Filinvest City. He added that the discreet beggar I encountered was very lucky that there was no Filinvest City security guard present otherwise he would have been apprehended for committing a violation.
The guard also warned that such beggars who use signs and words (to convince people to give money) might be members of local crime syndicates.
By the time my short talk with the bank security guard ended, the discreet beggar was several meters away heading towards the direction of South Supermarket.
Out of curiosity, I decided to follow him temporarily to determine if I could spot him trying to find a new spot to beg at others.
I walked some meters towards the discreet beggar and after a minute, I guessed he could have decided to go home. I took one last picture of him walking away before deciding to let him go.
The final picture I took of the discreet beggar walking to the distance.
This incident I am writing about was NOT the first time I encountered a beggar along the roads of Filinvest City. What makes this different is that the beggar used a handy sign while saying only a few words to beg.
I have a strong mental defense and I always practice caution (including awareness of my surrounding). It’s natural for me to resist the manipulation attempts of street beggars.
If I were to give out money to help people who really need help, I would not give to beggars roaming around and I certainly discourage you from giving to them especially if the begging constitutes a local violation. Surely you would not want to give your money to a beggar who happens to be a member of a crime gang!
Going back to encountering the beggars who roam around and near you, better have a defensive mindset and be ready to protect not only your money but also yourselves. Also be ready to call the local police or the nearest security guard if ever the beggar victimizes you.
Thank you for reading. If you find this article to be engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. Also my fantasy book The World of Havenoris still available in paperback and e-book format. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco.
Author Carlo Carrasco 