BSP eyes corporate money changers in fight vs dollar speculators

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has drawnup a list of corporate money changers in its intensified efforts to clamp down on suspected dollar speculators.

BSP Deputy Governor Alberto V. Reyes said that money changers have been ordered to account for their foreign currency transactions, a move that would finally plug one of the loopholes in foreign exchange trading.

Although money changers are non-bank entities and not directly under the regulatory supervision of the BSP, Reyes said they are still covered by the circular that requires them to file monthly reports of their transactions.

"We issued the circular in 2000 and no one complied," Reyes said. "We have not received a single report. So now we are enforcing it."

Reyes said the circular implemented the provisions of the New Central Bank Act that required monthly report of purchases and sales as well as daily position of foreign exchange.

The circular covered foreign exchange corporations and other companies that are not subsidiaries or affiliates of banks, quasi banks and or non-bank financial intermediaries.

"We want to know which of these money changers are major players, we want to find out the volume of their transactions," he said.

"It is important that we get an idea of the extent of their dealings where it concerns foreign currency trading. Right now we don’t have any idea," Reyes said. "What we want to do, to start with, is to get an idea exactly how big this is."

According to Reyes, the BSP has initially written the SM Group whose chain of department stores also offer currency conversion as part of their services, especially for expatriates and returning overseas Filipino workers.

Reyes told reporters that SM promptly replied to BSP’s initial query and made a commitment to report all their transactions for the months of January and February.

Aside from money changers, Reyes said the BSP also wants to investigate the transactions of hotels that also offer currency conversion services.

"We want to monitor, that’s all," he said.