THE state-run Philippine Deposit Insurance Inc. (PDIC) reiterated its appeal to consumers to check on banks’ financial conditions before entrusting to them their life savings.
“You have to know your bank well,” said Jose Villaret Jr., PDIC vice president for corporate affairs, in an interview on Friday.
“Before you entrust to them your hard-earned money, know the bank and the people running it,” he added.
Villaret explained that many Filipinos still fall prey to scams and bank fraud because they do no research about the bank’s history, management, products, services, and financial status.
Others, he said, also become blinded by the high interest rate being offered by some banks. Villaret advised walking away from offersthat are too good to be true.
“If you already hear stories about mismanagement, then take it as a warning signal,” advised Villaret. “If you feel there’s something wrong already, then transfer your funds to another bank.” He likened the decision of a parent transferring his/her child to another school after being bullied. “In the case of banking, of course, you want to protect your assets,” he said.
Villaret said 27 banks that closed from 1998 to 2017 have branches in Cebu, 13 of which had head offices in the provice.
Mismanagement, insolvency, and unsound business practices remain the top reasons banks close or are placed under PDIC’s receivership. This is why he urged the public to regularly examine the bank’s health status.
Villaret was in Cebu to announce that there are 52 properties and five motor vehicles that are up for bidding, with a total minimum disposal price of P32.87 million this Dec. 8.
As of June 30, PDIC has about 595 member-banks, of which 495 are rural banks, 58 are thrift banks, and 42 are commercial banks.
Last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) closed 22 banks with an aggregate insured deposits of P2 billion covering 72,484 deposit accounts.