SSS benefits for 2026 to exceed P250 billion
The Social Security System (SSS) is targeting to release more than P250 billion in benefits this year as it continues to expand assistance to members while rolling out new digital lending services.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, SSS President and CEO Robert Joseph de Claro said that higher benefit payouts would likely weigh on the pension fund’s income, which he expects to fall below the more than P142.97 billion recorded in 2025.
“The reason why we exist is because we are a social protection fund. Of course we need to ensure financial sustainability, but our concern is more on benefits,” De Claro said.
The latest financial data from the SSS showed that benefit payments climbed 19 percent to P173.5 billion in the first half of the year.
The higher payouts coincided with the rollout of its first-ever annual pension increase, which is being implemented in phases until 2027 without requiring an increase in member contributions.
Under the program, retirement and disability pensioners will receive a cumulative 33-percent increase in monthly pensions by 2027, while death and survivor pensioners will receive a total 16-percent hike.
New pension adjustments are scheduled every September, although the second tranche began in June, resulting in about P6 billion in additional pension payments through August.
In terms of reserve funds, the SSS is eyeing to hit P1.5 trillion this year and P1.75 trillion in 2027, putting it on track to reach P2 trillion by 2028.
Asked if the SSS is considering additional investments to boost its income, De Claro said the pension fund is still working on a long-planned policy that would allow it to invest in global markets.
Under current rules, the SSS is allowed to invest up to 7.5 percent of its funds in foreign currency.
“If there would be interesting opportunities overseas, then we would invest in a very controlled, secured way. Depending on the uptake, we’ll probably reach 7.5 percent within the next 5 years,” De Claro said, noting that this would amount to about $200 million.
Microloan program
In a separate development, the SSS has partnered with Yuchengco-led Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) to implement its microloan program through the bank’s DiskarTech mobile application.
The SSS Loan Lite program, which was first implemented in September, offers eligible members loans ranging from P1,000 to P20,000, with repayment periods of 15, 30, 60 or 90 days.
The partnership builds on the MySSS Card program, which has seen member onboarding through RCBC’s DiskarTech platform grow by 830 percent. SSS benefits disbursed through the platform reached about P2.7 billion from January to July.
“This is where I think this partnership does something important. It gives people a formal regulated alternative to 5-6, to loan sharks, without asking them to prove themselves worthy of trust first,” RCBC executive vice president and chief innovation and inclusion officer Lito Villanueva said.
The SSS has so far tapped RCBC, UnionBank and Landbank for the program.
