BSP: Banco Filipino clients with deposits of P5K or less first to get money back

Depositors of troubled Banco Filipino Savings and Mortgage Bank with deposits of P5,000 or less will be the first ones to get their money back, now that the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) has taken over the bank. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Deputy General Counsel Elmore Capule said this early Friday even as he stressed that the BSP's “immediate concern is to secure the records of the bank lest they be tampered or lost." “Ang (depositor na may) less than P5,000 muna, automatic yan. Hintay lang sila, ime-mail sa kanila by check ang P5,000. Ang above P5,000 to P500,000 may schedule. Kaya lang ang PDIC, we’re being assured, bibigyan nila ng utmost priority," Capule said in an interview on dzBB radio. (Depositors with less than P5,000 can expect to get through mail their checks for the amount. Those with deposits between P5,001 and P500,000 will have to wait for their schedule. We have been assured the PDIC will give utmost priority to helping the depositors get their money back.) He said the BSP expects the processing of claims to be fast, as Banco Filipino (BF)’s records are computerized. According to him, the PDIC took over the BF Thursday night, shortly after the BSP ordered the bank's closure and placed it under the receivership.

But those with deposits higher than P500,000 may have to wait to get any amount in excess of P500,000 back as the PDIC can only insure deposits of up to P500,000. “Dadaan pa sa korte yan. Yan ang pagkakataon habang kino-convert sa asset (There will be court proceedings, while the bank’s assets are converted to cash)," he said. Also, Capule asked depositors for understanding for the BSP’s move, saying it could not return depositors’ money as long as the bank remained open. “Kung hindi namin isinara di sila pwede bayaran ng PDIC. Hanggang bukas ang bangko hanggang walang bayad galing sa PDIC," he said. Procedures Capule said depositors can proceed to Banco Filipino’s branches and fill out application forms to get their money back. He said PDIC teams will be at the branch offices. He said those who want to go to the bank’s branches must bring their passbooks, automated teller machine (ATM) cards, deposit slips, and other proofs that they are depositors. Charges vs BF officials eyed Capule said the BSP is studying whether to file charges against BF's officials for the bank’s closure. “We are studying if the bank’s officers had committed actions in violation of administrative, criminal and civil laws. We are investigating the matter," he said. Capule also belied BF official Perfecto Yasay Jr.’s claim that the BSP is to blame for the bank's woes because of its “mismanagement." He argued that the BSP has nothing to gain from mismanaging Banco Filipino because taxpayers will have to shoulder the costs of reimbursing depositors if the bank is closed. “Pag nagsara yan sino ang magbabayad ng deposits niyan, PDIC, diba? Napaka-irresponsible naman namin kung pabagsakin ang bangko, tapos pababayaran sa gobyerno ang deposito. Mga P9 billion ang insured deposits dito," he said. (If it closes, who will pay for the deposits, the PDIC, right? We would have been very irresponsible if we deliberately forced the bank’s closure then have the government shoulder the costs. The bank has P9 billion in insured deposits.) Also, he belied Yasay’s claim the BSP managed the bank through a controller, adding that the BSP merely has an enhanced monitoring team that acts as an external auditor, with no powers other than keeping watch over the bank’s operations," he said. Last Thursday, the BSP announced that depositors with a balance of P5,000 and below — about 53 percent of the total depositors — need not file their deposit insurance claims. The PDIC will immediately process and mail check payments within the week. Those with balances of over P5,000 would still have to be validated and need to file for their claims, the BSP said. — LBG, GMA News