THE Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) emphasized the vital role of depositing money in banks to achieve financial stability
Sandra Diaz, senior vice president for the Management Services Sector of PDIC, on Friday, June 7, said that through the Depositor Protection and Awareness Week (DPAW) from June 16 to 22, Filipinos are encouraged to save money in formal channels such as in banks.
This, for Diaz, is a means to protect the depositing public, especially small depositors, ensuring the safety of their hard-earned money.
“We hope that each and everyone of you will have a better understanding and appreciation of the important role of deposit insurance in the lives of our depositing public and how we are also actively playing our part in ensuring that more and more Filipinos become financially inclusive by motivating them that when they choose to deposit their hard-earned savings in banks, these deposits or deposited money are safeguarded by PDIC,” she said.
PDIC’s Vice President for Corporate Affairs Jose Villaret said that their maximum deposit insurance coverage is P500,000 per depositor per bank.
“We might say this is not much but, you know, at P500,000, we’re already fully insuring 97% of the deposit accounts in the bank system,” he said.
The country’s gross domestic savings has been declining, a proof that Filipinos are not saving enough, he said.
“Money is important to all of us. The first thing that we think of money is how to spend it to address or meet our present needs. However, we should also look at the importance of money for the future. What do we need later on or 10 years from now, five years from now,” he said.
“Through the years we’ve seen that the ratio of the gross domestic savings has been declining, it is about 9.1 by year 2022,” he added.
Meanwhile, there is a problem on how Filipinos save which puts their money at risk, according to Villaret.
“For those who are saving in the country, some of them are not saving wisely, some put it in their houses or in their cabinets. There’s a risk in putting their money elsewhere. As you can see in our posters, pwede itong masunog, pwede itong mabaha, pwede pa ‘tong manakaw,” he said.
Villaret thinks that it’s not just about lack of savings that makes Filipinos hesitant to deposit in banks but also the intimidating atmosphere therein.
“Meron silang perception na mahirap and that includes not only the process but also the atmosphere or the ambiance.” (ABS-CBN News)
