Angara: Shift to digital payments welcomed by all sectors

Senator Sonny Angara on Saturday said both the government and the private sector welcomed the promotion of digital payments as the way forward in providing Filipinos with a fast, safe and efficient way of making transactions in the country.

As the author of Senate Bill 1764 or the Use of Digital Payments Act, the Senate finance chair said there was widespread support for the adoption of digital payments for government and private transactions, “for as long as there are adequate safeguards in place to protect our people.”

“Instituting digital payments, particularly in all government agencies, offices and local government units, is consistent with the thrust to promote ease of doing business. This will also go a long way in ensuring the efficient delivery of services to the people,” Angara said.

“Consumers have experienced the convenience of making digital payments—be it for buying goods, the payment of services or their monthly bills,” he said.

“Now we want to provide Filipinos the option of doing the same for their transactions with the government so that physically going to and lining up at city hall or other offices will no longer be necessary,” Angara added.

During the first hearing on the bill by the Senate banks subcommittee SB 1764, the government and private sector stakeholders provided their inputs on the bill, which Angara said will be taken into consideration in the crafting of the committee report.

The National Economic and Development Authority noted that the bill is in line with the strategies adopted in the Updated Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap 2023.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua said the adoption of digital payments is exceedingly significant in line with the need for contact-less transactions through financial technologies in transitioning to the new normal.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said the objective of the bill is aligned with the BSP’s roadmap converting at least 50 percent of volume of retail payments into digital form and having at least 70 percent of Filipino adults onboarded to the formal financial system by 2023.

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Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)