The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), through the assistance and guidance of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), is tapping various financial service providers (FSPs) to conduct digital payment of the emergency cash subsidy under the Social Amelioration
Program (SAP).
DSWD will sign a memorandum of agreement with the participating FSPs, together with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) on Tuesday, June 30, at the Department’s Central Office in Batasan to formalize the implementation of this initiative.
DSWD said that engaging FSPs to undertake digital electronic disbursement through restricted transactional accounts, like bank or e-money accounts, ensures that the cash subsidies will reach the beneficiaries in the most expedient and reliable manner while still complying with the existing health and safety protocols.
In this arrangement, BSP provided technical assistance to DSWD in identifying the qualified FSPs that will undertake the digital payment.
At present, BSP has identified six FSPs that are compliant with the minimum qualification requirements for the engagement. These are GCash, RCBC, Robinsons Bank, PayMaya, Starpay, and Unionbank.
In its letter to the DSWD Undersecretary for Operations, Atty. Aimee S. Torrefranca-Neri, BSP said that in identifying the FSPs, primary considerations were given to the presence of payout partners to ensure ease and ability to cash out by beneficiaries, presence of any business
model institution, historical experience in commercial roll out, and type of cash out points that may contribute to ensuring liquidity/availability of cash.
Meanwhile, LBP will be the main depository bank and will be responsible in downloading funds to the FSPs. LBP will credit the program fund into the FSPs funding accounts maintained with its Batasan Branch or in other financial institution based on the instruction and payroll
documents provided by DSWD within twenty-four hours from receipt of payroll documents.
The FSPs, on the other hand, will credit the emergency subsidies into the beneficiaries’ restricted transactional or nominated accounts within 24 hours upon receipt of the funds from LBP.
DSWD is now finalizing important details of the distribution process of the SAP second tranche with the LBP and the participating FSPs.
Distribution of digital payment is expected to start next
week.
The Department reminded the beneficiaries that similar to the regular transaction for digital accounts, there will be a minimal amount of cash out fee of not more than P50.00 to be deducted from their subsidies, if they will opt to withdraw from the partner-outlets of the FSPs. ###
