BSP: PH may miss 2028 digital payments goal
The Philippines may not reach its 2028 target of converting 70 percent of total payments to digital channels, the central bank governor said, pointing to sluggish uptake while rising cybersecurity risks need urgent action.
The goal was set under the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028—the socioeconomic blueprint of the Marcos administration—to accelerate the country’s shift to a cash-lite society. But Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said the transition was moving more slowly than expected.
“To be honest, it’s been slow,” Remolona said in an interview with OneNews. “We’re on track, but maybe it will take a couple more years than we thought to get where we want to go.”
As of 2024, 57.4 percent of retail payments were made through digital channels, central bank data showed.
Adoption has been uneven across sectors. The government led the shift, with 97.2 percent of its transactions conducted digitally in 2024, the highest among the three major payment categories tracked by regulators. Individuals were not far behind, with 72.2 percent of their payments made electronically.
Challenges ahead
Even so, officials acknowledged the next phase would be more difficult. The central bank’s target to digitalize 60 percent to 70 percent of retail payments by 2028 requires expanding the user base while lowering transaction costs and strengthening antifraud systems.
The push had a clear economic rationale. The Bank for International Settlements has found that every 1-percentage-point increase in digital payment use corresponds with a 0.1-percentage-point rise in gross domestic product per capita and a 0.06-percentage-point drop in informal employment. These are gains linked to better access to credit and other basic financial services.
BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan has said cutting transaction fees and reinforcing safeguards are critical to building public trust and encouraging wider use.
Private-sector players are aiming higher. FinTech Alliance Philippines has laid out an “80×80” vision, seeking 80 percent of adults to hold digital transaction accounts and 80 percent of retail payments to go digital by 2028.
For Remolona, tackling cybersecurity risks is key to wider adoption of digital payments.
“We worry a lot about cyber risks,” he said. “So even as we’ve encouraged digitalization, we’re also trying to get the banks to also make sure that they defend themselves against cyber risks.”
