More Filipinos now have basic deposit accounts, or BDA, which have increased by 174 percent to 22.9 million last year compared to 8.3 million in 2022.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas,or BSP, said it recorded the growth in BDA between the second quarter of 2022 and the same period in 2023.

Banks offering BDA included 158 provincial banks, the BSP said.

The central bank attributed the increase in BDA among Filipinos to the low fee of P100 for opening such an account and the removal of a minimum maintaining balance and a dormancy fee to open an account.

Through BDA, the BSP said individuals and micro, small and medium entrepreneurs, or MSME, can build wealth which then helps them access loan and investment products from various financial firms.

The BSP added they can also transfer funds and pay retail items digitally amid the global shift to online products and services.

Using the Philippine Identification System or PhilSys, the central bank said opening a BDA has been made easy.

Savings still lags in region

“PhilSys transactions are converted into BDA after the PhilSys registration and biometrics process which is done through the co-location strategy of the Philippine Statistics Authority and the Land Bank of the Philippines,” the BSP said.

According to economic researcher CEIC, the savings rate of Filipino households slightly increased from negative 5 percent of gross domestic product or GDP during the pandemic in 2021 to negative 3 percent in the next year toward recovery.

However, the Philippine overall savings rate is still lower at 20 percent of GDP last year compared to Indonesia’s 30 percent and Malaysia’s 25 percent.