Based on the Global Findex 2021 of the Washington-based World Bank, the Philippines saw a significant improvement in the push towards financial inclusion, as 51 percent of Filipino adults were found to now have access to financial institutions compared to 2017.
For 2021, 51 percent of Filipino adults have account ownership, either in a bank, a mobile money provider or other financial institution. This is up 17 percentage points from the 2017 level of 34 percent.
Broken down, 30 percent of Filipinos have bank accounts while only five percent have mobile money accounts. About 16 percent of adults have access to both. Of this, 47 percent are women while poor Filipinos with bank access now covers 34 percent of the adult population.
However, 57 percent of unbanked adults in the country noted that accounts are still too expensive.
The WB credited this sharp leap in financial inclusion to the COVID-19 pandemic which drove a large increase in digital payments amid the expansion of formal financial services. Such an expansion created new economic opportunities, narrowing the gender gap in account ownership and building resilience at the household level to better manage financial shocks.
It went as far to say that accounts enabled financial independence and strengthened economic empowerment among women.
The increased use of digital payments was also noted as over 40 percent of adults who made merchant in-store or online payments using a card, phone or the internet did so for the first time during the pandemic.
While these gains in financial inclusion are transforming the ways in which more people make and receive payments, borrow and save money, a large chunk of the mostly poor population who ironically need it most are still left behind and need to be encouraged and allowed access to these essential financial services that could allow them to transform their many aspects of their lives.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced many Filipinos to adapt to the new ways of conducting financial transactions. As more are starting to enjoy those benefits, government and the financial sector must work harder so even more people are included in this better way of doing things.*
