BPI raises withdrawal fees by 50% on other banks’ ATM

Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has announced a 50-percent increase in withdrawal service fee against clients who will use non-BPI automated teller machines (ATMs).   In a public notice posted on its website, BPI the higher service fee – P15 from P10 – starts on Oct. 22 and is applicable on all withdrawal transactions.   The P15 fee applies to BPI cardholders using non-BPI machines that include the networks Bancnet, Expressnet, and Megalink.   BPI did not cite a reason behind the move, but industry players said it was a strategy to cope with rising costs, noting that banks pay a significant rent for space occupied by ATMs.   Bankers, who asked not to be named as they were not authorized to speak on the matter, also said banks are looking for ways to generate more revenues, especially after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas decided to waive interest payments on reserves kept by banks in the central bank vault.   Earlier this year, the BSP announced an overhaul of the reserve requirement (RR) framework and scrapped interest payments banks’ reserves.    The requirement is the proportion of liabilities or deposits that banks have been mandated to keep with the BSP as reserves.   Bengko Sentral’s move was seen as a way of reducing its interest expense, which was partly blamed for its nearly P34 billion in net loss last year. — VS, GMA News