Tuesday, July 10, 2007 UCPB, Globe ink contract for OFW service
MAKATI CITY—United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB), which is eyeing to triple its overseas Filipino worker (OFW) business to $400 million over the next two years, is partnering with Globe Telecom subsidiary, G-Xchange Inc. (GXI), to provide an innovative and more convenient remittance service for Filipinos abroad.
Under the agreement signed yesterday, the beneficiaries of the bank’s OFW clients can now claim their remittance in almost 1,500 GCash outlets all over the country, in addition to the UCPB branch network.
The tie-up will expand the bank’s market prospects to OFWs whose beneficiaries reside outside the service areas of the 212 branches of UCPB and its UCPB Savings Bank subsidiary, said UCPB Executive Vice President Higinio Macadaeg, who signed the agreement with GXI president Rizza Maniego-Eala.
UCPB set up a dedicated OFW banking unit in April to expand its OFW-related business, which covers not only remittance but also loans, investments and other banking services that the OFWs and their families would need.
UCPB vice president for Remittance Marketing Victor Ruben Tuason said the partnership with GXI reflects the bank’s strategy of forging alliances with other businesses to deliver a wider range of products and services to OFWs.
Financing
He cited as an example the P500-million special home financing tie up that UCPB inked earlier this year with property developer DM Consunji Inc. to make buying homes more affordable to OFW families.
The special financing will provide a higher loan amount equivalent to 80 percent of the appraised value of the property compared to the standard 70 percent.
Tuason said that moving forward, UCPB plans to ink similar tie-ups not only with other property developers but also with car dealers, home appliance distributors and even schools. (PR)
