BPI adds Metro Drug to growing list of clients

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has added Metro Drug Inc. to its growing clients of Internet-based financial management platform, allowing the linkage of distributors and customers nationwide with a wide range of billing and payment options.

The financial management platform is just part of the Ayala-controlled bank’s renewed thrust to increase and improve its corporate banking clientele base.

The platform is a first of its kind that allows clients of manufacturing companies like Metro Drug to make future-date payments of not later than 30 days as well as payment remittances through electronic fund transfers or over-the-counter payments.

It connects clients to every aspect of their business, i.e., to their customers, distributors, sales force and suppliers thus reducing paper-based transactions while allowing for real-time connectivity.

"Think of the amount of savings it would result for a huge company like Metro Drug," said David Ames, Metro Drug president and chief executive officer.

The platform can also do debit-credit transactions, select appropriate account modes, make real-time balance inquiries, multiple disbursement, controls support, online and offline viewing of reports, secure messaging facility, convenient interface to backend ERP systems, and consolidated view payables/receivables on the website with the help of BPI Expresslink eCommerce.

"We already have the best and widest corporate base using our Internet-based capabilities to pay their taxes and other transactions with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)," said Aurelio R. Montinola III, BPI senior executive vice president and chief operating officer.

For transactions involving funds transfer, BPI Expresslink eCommerce uses Privatewire Minikey, the latest and most advanced public key infrastructure technology. This high level of security includes authentication of the identity of the person accessing the system and establishes non-repudiation of transactions.

Montinola said that BPI still has a suite of Internet banking products for the corporate and retail clients. "It helps keep us ahead in banking products and ahead in providing customer convenience."