DBP to launch hedging program for OFWs this month

The government-owned Development Bank of the Philippines is set to open this month a special hedging facility to help overseas Filipino workers cope with the continuing appreciation of the peso against the US dollar, according to Labor Secretary Arturo Brion.

He assured the special facility would provide relief for OFWs and their relatives who were hard-hit by the continuing spike in the value of the peso against the US dollar.

Brion said the facility would reduce the high transaction costs on OFW remittances sparked by the rise of the value of the peso against the US currency, and guarantee a fair return on the remittances of Filipinos working abroad.

Brion made the disclosure during the taping in Malacanang of "The Cabinet Speaks" hosted by Press Undersecretary Martin Crisostomo, with co-host Paolo Romero of the Philippine Star.

The labor chief said he and DBP chairperson Patricia Sto. Tomas are scheduled to meet in Hong Kong later this month to inaugurate the "hedging program."

Under the program, the remittance-deposit by a group of OFWs for a certain period would enjoy a guaranteed return, and a measure of protection against the fluctuating peso-US dollar exchange rate.

"This is not only for the Development Bank of the Philippines. I would hope that in due time other banks would catch on and offer similar if not the same measures," Brion said.

On Wednesday, Brion said the Land Bank of the Philippines has also expressed interest in participating in the hedging program for OFWs.

Brion added that he is encouraging OFWs to avail themselves of the hedge program to increase their savings and avoid the pitfalls of the so-called "rags-to-riches-to-rags syndrome."

"As far as I know this is a facility that is available. What is necessary is there should be a group of employees who will band together," he said. - GMANews.TV

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more