The controversial flood control projects, which have affected the nation’s psyche since July, not only submerged houses, streets, and towns but now threaten to sink the country’s banking system as well.

This may be the reason the automatic teller machines of several banks are always offline and have no cash to dispense.  

Nosy Tarsee revealed that a project contractor made several withdrawals from nine banks, both private and government-run, since the flood control scandal blew wide open.

“The contractor has withdrawn a total of P62 billion. That’s almost P7 billion per bank at P1 billion per day. That could cause a bank run. How did that happen? There are bank managers who act as approving officers and receive a percentage of every withdrawal. They are the richest bank managers in town,” Nosy said.

He said that since the contractor flew into a panic to get the “corrupted money” out of the banks immediately, he made voluminous withdrawals using the authority of the bank managers.   

To recall, senators flagged the government-run Land Bank of the Philippines for allowing the withdrawal of nearly P500 million in cash over two days by a contractor linked to ghost flood control projects in Bulacan.

Following this, the BSP issued Circular 1218 requiring large-value transactions exceeding P500,000 (or its equivalent in foreign currency) to be conducted through traceable channels, such as checks, online fund transfers, direct credit to deposit accounts, or digital payments.

“This would benefit the banks as they will gain more depositors, especially those honest depositors who need to disburse money every day, since there’s a cap,” Nosy Tarsee said.

Effective 4 October 2025, customers who need to withdraw more than P500,000 in cash are required to provide a valid ID, a reason for the withdrawal, and additional information or supporting documents (e.g., payment of hospital bills or business supplier invoices).