Financial literacy, capability pushed amid pandemic

By MAYVELIN U. CARABALLO, TMT, Manila Times, 13 Jul 2020

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is coordinating with other institutions to improve financial literacy and financial capability in the country amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic crisis, its chief said over the weekend.

In a speech during the Financial Literacy Summit Online, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno stressed that a survey showed that only 23 percent of adults have bank accounts while only 4 percent of the adult population use electronic payments.

Nearly half of adults (48 percent) have savings, but 68 percent of them keep savings at home.

“These numbers show the apparent financial insecurity of Filipinos,” he said.

Diokno added that more than a third of Filipino adults are unable to meet regular spending needs, and resort to loans to deal with emergencies.

The central bank chief also underscored that only 18 percent have insurance, and only 3 percent invest in financial instruments.

“Painfully, the Covid-19 pandemic has surfaced their importance. Financial unpreparedness limits the ability of families to cope and recover from the socio-economic impact of Covid-19,” he said.

Besides this, Diokno added that there are also families and individuals, despite earning regular incomes, still struggling to understand financial concepts or make effective budget plans.

This is supported by survey data, he added, saying that of the seven financial literacy-related questions, Filipino adults were only able to correctly answer three.

The BSP head added that Filipinos have little understanding of compounding interest; the effect of inflation on the buying power of households; and investment risks, returns and diversification.

Survey results also show that Filipinos have a forward-looking attitude but scored low in daily money management and long-term financial planning.

“This limitation is highlighted in unexpected situations such as the pandemic, where, more than ever, preparedness for the proverbial rainy day is brought to fore,” Diokno emphasized.