Amid the widespread interest from financial firms to operate as virtual banks, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said it is looking into digital bank-like in ensuring that new digital banks will truly deliver unique products or services to the local market and prevent arbitrage.

“We’re busy right now determining which among the digicentric institutions that we have right now can already be considered as operating like a digital bank. If the BSP has a basis for us to convert their license, then we will require them,” BSP Head of Technology Risk and Innovation Supervision Department Melchor Plabasan told media last Wednesday during a break from the talks at the third BSP-International Monetary Fund Systemic Risk Dialogue in Mactan, Cebu.

“Because if you’re already behaving like a digital bank, you should be regulated like a digital bank, not a rural bank, for example. That’s why the intention really is to minimize the arbitrage,” he added.

The application period for new digital banks starts 1 January 2025.

A maximum of four slots for new digital banks are open to local and foreign existing financial firms that want to convert or expand to a digital bank and those that are new in the financial industry.

However, Plabasan stressed the BSP may not approve an additional entry or less than the maximum slot as it stresses the existence of unique products or services to Filipinos.

“But they have to offer something new to the table. We will not complete the four just to say we have four new licenses. If no one meets the additional requirements, then we will stay with the existing number,” Plabasan added.

BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. had said applicants’ business concepts should deliver financial services especially to the “untapped or underserved market segments.”