OFBank accounts more than double from January to July

MANILA, Philippines — Digital-only Overseas Filipino Bank (OFBank) has opened deposit accounts for roughly 46,000 individuals as of end-July, as it expands its services to introduce migrant workers to the financial sector.

The Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) yesterday reported that a total of 25,648 new accounts were set up with OFBank’s Digital Onboarding System with Artificial Intelligence (DOBSAI) from January to July, more than double from the end-2020 level.

OFBank, a wholly owned subsidiary of state-run LBP, is the first branchless bank in the Philippines and caters to the financial demands of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Together with the 19,887 DOBSAI accounts registered as of end-2020, OFBank now maintains a clientele of 45,535 members transacting through its system. With DOBSAI, OFWs can open a deposit account with the bank by processing it on a supported mobile device.

According to LBP, OFBank’s network has reached 113 countries and territories in support of its mandate to serve the OFW market. Also, most of its members are located in OFW hotspots like Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Hong Kong and Qatar.

OFBank also sustains a growing number of clients based in Kuwait, Taiwan, Italy, Bahrain and Malaysia.

OFWs registered with the digital-only bank can access the services of 763 merchants worldwide listed in the mobile application through LBP’s LinkBiz.Portal.

App users can transact with 277 state agencies; 186 educational institutions; 140 cooperatives and associations; 124 utility and service providers; 20 hospitals and clinics, as well as 16 banks and insurers.

The government last year launched the OFBank at the height of the pandemic, delivering on the provisions of President Duterte’s Executive Order (EO) 44. Under the EO, the President ordered the LBP to push through with its acquisition of the Philippine Postal Savings Bank and convert it into what is now the OFBank.

In March the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas approved the OFBank’s license to operate as a digital financial institution. The bank will soon conclude the second phase of a three-step framework in becoming a digital bank after getting its certificate of authority to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission in July.

Aside from maintaining deposits, account holders in OFBank can use the mobile app to transfer funds and pay bills similar to the digital version of traditional banks.

OFBank accounts can also be used to purchase bonds auctioned by the government.