CCAP, BSP to promote credit card literacy online

MANILA, Philippines — The Credit Card Association of the Philippines (CCAP) has partnered with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to raise consumer awareness on the responsible use of credit cards and to promote credit card literacy.

The tie-up was formalized through the signing of a memorandum of agreement on Aug. 5 at the BSP Manila Head Office and timed with the launch of the central bank’s Innovative Financial Education Programs.

Under the agreement, the BSP and CCAP will jointly craft a credit card e-learning course and provide learning resources that will be made accessible to the public through the BSP E-Learning Academy (BELA), an online platform on personal finance, economics, and central banking courses. BELA is expected to be fully accessible to the public by the second quarter of 2025, according to the BSP.

Since adopting its tagline “Pushing for Responsible Credit” in 2015, CCAP has led a continuous campaign to enhance credit card literacy.

This includes releasing educational materials in print and social media, conducting seminars at major colleges and universities in Metro Manila, and hosting webinars for both private and public sector employees.

In addition, CCAP has actively participated in events such as the Cards & Payments Conference/Expo that ran from 2016 to 2018 and was organized by Singapore-based event organizer Terrapinn.

CCAP’s executive director also regularly appears on public service radio and TV programs to discuss key credit card issues, including interest rate caps, pandemic-related grace periods and fraud prevention.

Recently, CCAP unveiled a campaign to simplify credit card terminologies, aimed to ensure that credit cardholders can easily grasp essential information, promoting better financial decision-making.

The campaign will be shared across CCAP’s social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, utilizing engaging formats like comics and videos.

“CCAP’s commitment to supporting the BSP’s National Strategy for Financial Inclusion 2022-2028 remains steadfast. These various initiatives support the BSP’s vision to achieve inclusive growth and financial resilience for Filipinos,” CCAP chairman Rolando Ebreo said.

For the fourth consecutive year, the organization of the 16 member-institutions has been recognized by the BSP as one of the recipients of the 2024 Outstanding BSP Stakeholders “for its exemplary support to the mandates and programs of the BSP.”

At the 2024 Outstanding BSP Stakeholders Appreciation Ceremony last Aug. 2, CCAP officials led bg Ebreo, president Geraldine Liggayu and treasurer Harry Gue received the award on behalf of the association.