BSP grants bank relief in Sendong devastated areas

MANILA, Philippines - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has extended regulatory relief to banks with head offices and branches located in areas devastated by tropical storm Sendong that claimed thousands of lives this month.

The BSP said the relief would enable thrift, rural, and cooperative banks to assist and ease the financial burden of bank customers adversely affected by the storm that pumelled several provinces from Dec. 15 to 21.

Areas entitled to the regulatory relief identified by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council include Catanduanes, Capiz, Bohol, Negros Oriental, Zamboanga del Norte, Bukidnon, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Compostela Valley, Davao del Norte, Caraga, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Sur, Lanao del Sur, and Autonomouse Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The program allows thrift, rural, and cooperative banks could now exclude existing loans of borrowers in affected areas from the computation of past due ratios provided these are restructured or given relief and at the same time reduce the five percent general loan loss provision to one percent for restructured loans of borrowers in the affected areas.

Other measures include the non-imposition of penalties on legal reserves deficiencies with head office and branches in the affected areas as well as the imposition of a moratorium on monthly payments due to BSP for banks with ongoing rehabilitation programs.

Subject to BSP approval, banks would be allowed to book allowance for probable losses on a staggered basis over maximum of five years for all types of credit extended to individual and businesses directly affected by the calamity.

Likewise, the BSP would not impose monetary penalties on banks in the affected areas for delays in the submission of supervisory reports.

Banks would also be allowed to provide financial assistance to their officers and employees who were affected by the calamity including those assistance that may not be within the scope of the existing BSP-approved Fringe Benefit Program.

Likewise, the central bank would grant a 60-day grace period to settle the outstanding rediscounting obligations as of Sept. 24 with the BSP of all rediscounting banks in the affected areas.

The BSP said similar relief measures were extended by the BSP to thrift as well as rural and cooperative banks in cities or provinces that were affected by previous typhoons such as Cosme, Frank, Ondoy, Pepeng, Juaning, Mina, and Pedring.