UCPB expands remittance business

The United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) is gunning for a bigger slice of the estimated $12-billion overseas remittance pie and is forming a dedicated overseas Filipino worker (OFW) banking unit to spearhead the effort.

UCPB executive vice president for institutional and retail banking Higinio Macadaeg said the division-sized unit will focus solely on developing programs to meet all the banking needs of the OFWs, from pre-departure loans, to remittance services to housing loans, auto loans, educational loans, small business loans, investment and retirement planning.

"Our strategy is to capture the OFWs’ banking requirements at every stage of the overseas employment cycle, from the moment they get their foreign contracts to the time they get settled in their jobs abroad and begin sending money back to their relatives here, all the way up to the point where they are well off enough to begin building their savings and investments in preparation for retiring from overseas work for good. We call this strategy ‘OFW Banking’," Mr. Macadaeg said.

UCPB generated $132 million in OFW-related business, mainly from foreign remittance, despite it not being too aggressive in the market.

With a dedicated OFW banking unit offering a broader range of products and services, UCPB projects to triple its OFW business volume over the next two years and achieve a sustained 10-percent annual growth thereafter.

Macadaeg said its new banking unit, the Remittance Marketing Division, will be set up by April this year, and will roll out its program initially targeting OFWs in the Middle East, the biggest OFW market in terms of volume."Once the Middle East program is in place and running, we will expand to other OFW markets in Asia and Europe."

UCPB is presently enhancing its systems and service delivery infrastructure, consisting of straight though processing (STP) of remittances, its electronic banking channels, and its 178 branches nationwide.

"We will also increase our tie-ups with remittance firms both here and abroad and with non-traditional distribution channels such as pawnshops and convenience stores nationwide to broaden our reach," Macadaeg added.

The country’s banking system has been increasing its share of the remittance business amounting to over $12 billion in 2006. Known as the formal sector, he banking system already accounts for more than 90 percent of the business.

Foreign remittances from OFWs and migrant Filipinos is estimated to surpass the $14- billion mark this year. — TPT