Business groups seek return of P107B PDIC funds

A coalition of five of the country’s most influential business organizations is urging the national government to return the P107 billion transferred from the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) to the National Treasury and restore it to the 2026 national budget.

In a joint statement released Tuesday, 18 November 2025, the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD), the Makati Business Club (MBC), the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), and the Philippine Finance Association (PFA) called on the Senate to reinstate the funds, saying doing so is crucial to restoring public trust amid growing fiscal and corruption concerns.

The PDIC, which protects depositors through the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF), serves as a co-regulator with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) by conducting bank examinations, issuing regulations, and acting as receiver for banks closed by the BSP’s Monetary Board.

The groups said the Marcos administration’s order in 2024 to remit P107 billion from the PDIC to the Treasury—enabled by a special provision under Unprogrammed Allocations, the same mechanism linked to the ghost flood control projects—was classified as part of dividend collections from government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs), “effectively sweeping a significant portion of the PDIC’s accumulated resources into the general fund.”

They warned that the move “sets a dangerous fiscal precedent,” adding that it “raises reputational risks for the government, regulators, and the entire banking sector at a time when public trust is already strained by corruption scandals and fiscal pressures.”

The business groups urged the Department of Finance (DOF) and Congress to return the funds to next year’s budget, implement stronger safeguards to ensure the DIF is excluded from future dividend collections, and release transparent financial documents detailing PDIC’s ability to withstand potential systemic shocks.

“The Philippine banking system today stands on solid ground. It boasts strong capitalization, improving asset quality, and robust regulatory oversight under the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). This strength, however, rests on the guarantee that in times of crisis, depositors will be protected. [That] assurance, even symbolically, could weaken the foundation of public confidence that sustains the financial system,” the coalition said.

They also cited the government’s recent return of P60 billion in PhilHealth funds in September as a precedent worth following, noting that both PhilHealth and PDIC serve as critical safety nets for Filipinos during crises.

“Returning the remitted funds will reaffirm that the resources of the PDIC are reserved exclusively for their intended purpose, to safeguard the savings of the Filipino people and uphold confidence in the financial system,” the statement added.

The joint appeal came a day after similar business groups—including MBC, FINEX, and PCCI—issued another statement expressing their shared commitment to supporting a competitive, resilient, and inclusive economy.