The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is proposing to require banks, digital lenders and other regulated financial institutions to connect their customer verification systems to the government’s National ID database, according to a report by Philstar Biz.
The proposed measure aims to streamline know-your-customer (KYC) processes and curb fraud by using the National ID system as a single source of identity verification. If approved, financial institutions would need to integrate their systems with the Philippine Statistics Authority’s database, potentially allowing faster account opening and stronger anti-money laundering compliance.
The proposal is expected to cover not only universal and commercial banks but also digital banks, electronic money issuers, and other BSP-supervised entities. Industry observers say this could reduce onboarding costs in the long run, though it raises questions about data privacy and the readiness of the national ID infrastructure to handle real-time verification requests from the private sector.