MANILA — Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona hailed the achievements of the central bank for the year 2024 during the BSP Annual Reception for the Banking Community, Friday night. 

One of the highlights he said is the release of the new polymer banknotes. Remolona told dozens of top officials of private and state-run banks that BSP began circulating what he calls the “new smarter, cleaner, and stronger polymer banknotes.”

The said banknotes were released in the last two weeks of December. It featured updated security features, but it was also criticized by some groups because the new bills no longer include the faces of heroes and former presidents.

Remolona also said other 2024 achievements include the upgrade in the credit rating outlook from S&P, the launch of the IRS peso market, and the expansion of repo market. He also hailed the Financial Services Cyber Resilience Plan and the passage of the Anti Financial Account Scamming Act.

The BSP chief now looks forward for 2025 as the central bank pushes for digitalization and Open Finance.

“I am thrilled to continue working with you to build on our shared successes. Let us continue working together on digitalization and financial inclusion.”

The Annual Reception for the Banking Community or known as the ‘Bankers’ Night’ was attended by the big names in the banking community including officials of top corporations like Augusto Zobel de Ayala and Hans Sy, among many others.

Former BSP governors also attended including Benjamin Diokno, who is still a Monetary Board member, Felipe Medalla, Jose Cuisia, Jaime Laya.

In his speech, Governor Remolona urged the banking community to continue working together with BSP on digitalization and financial inclusion.  He also encouraged the BSP and banks to intensify their efforts on Open Finance to ensure that people can choose financial services that best suit their needs.