Digital bank deposits top P150B
The country’s six digital banks amassed over P150 billion in deposits as of the first quarter, with funding growth continuing to outstrip that of traditional players as competition intensifies in the fast-expanding virtual banking sector.
Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that deposits in digital banks had reached P153 billion at the end of March, up 50 percent from a year earlier. Those funds were spread across nearly 38 million accounts, a 58-percent increase year-on-year.
The industry’s customer base expanded just as quickly. Digital banks counted over 25 million depositors as of March, a 67-percent jump from a year earlier, underscoring their deepening reach into segments of the retail market long underserved by brick-and-mortar lenders.
Such a performance beat the entire Philippine banking system, whose total deposits increased by nearly 10 percent to P22 trillion. Those funds were kept across 179 million bank accounts, up by almost 19 percent.
That number included traditional big banks that mainly provide loans to borrowers with tested credit profiles. According to the BSP, deposits held by large lenders grew by 10 percent to P21 trillion.
Greater competition
Moving forward, analysts said the decision of the BSP to reopen the digital banking sector to four more players would fire up competition for deposits.
BSP Deputy Governor Lyn Javier, head of the department regulating banks, said the central bank has begun reviewing applications and could select the candidates to be recommended to the Monetary Board within the first quarter of the year.
The BSP received three applications before the deadline late last year. It seeks to expand an industry that currently includes UNO Digital Bank, UnionDigital Bank, GoTyme, Tonik Digital Bank, Maya Bank and the Overseas Filipino Bank, a subsidiary of the state-run Land Bank of the Philippines.
The central bank has said profitability “remains a challenge” across the digital banking sector.
Still, the regulator said early losses largely reflect a growth and transformation phase rather than structural weakness. Similar patterns have emerged in other markets, where digital banks typically shoulder heavy upfront spending on technology, infrastructure and customer acquisition before reaching stable profitability.
