CIMB offers free electronic fund transfers

MANILA, Philippines — Digital banking services provider CIMB Bank Philippines is extending free electronic fund transfers via InstaPay and PESONet to its over six million customers.

CIMB Bank Philippines CEO Vijay Manoharan said the initiative is part of the bank’s efforts to support the digitalization journey of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

“Committed to support the BSP’s drive to facilitate greater adoption of digital transactions, we are excited to finally have InstaPay on our platform. Our six million CIMB customers can now use it to transfer funds for free and in real-time, giving them more control over their finances,” Manoharan said.

With the addition of InstaPay, CIMB customers can opt to transfer funds on the CIMB Bank PH using either InstaPay or PESONet.

Transfers to participating banks and involving amounts up to P50,000 may be done through InstaPay. On the other hand, transfers involving amounts exceeding P50,000 or banks that are not participating InstaPay institutions can be done via PESONet for free as well.

“CIMB does not charge any fees for all InstaPay transfers. Real-time and available 24/7. Through InstaPay, CIMB customers can easily transfer and receive funds using their CIMB accounts at any time of the day. There are no cut-offs and wait-times, but both senders and receivers must also be a participating InstaPay institution to enjoy instant transfers,” the bank said.

With InstaPay, clients can send and receive from over 60 banks and e-wallets.

Aside from serving six million customers, the innovative mobile-first digital banking solutions and services providing also has one million lending customers.

It has extended a cumulative credit limit amounting to P4.3 billion within seven months after the launch of its revolving credit product.

Last December, the bank launched REVI Credit, the country’s first fully digital revolving credit product, for all CIMB customers last December. Under the facility, users can get a credit line of up to P250,000, at interest rates as low as one percent and with no annual fees.

Under its Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap, the BSP aims to convert 50 percent of total retail transactions to electronic channels and increase the number of Filipino adults to 70 percent by 2023.

With the pandemic serving as catalyst, the share of digital payments to total retail transactions increased to 30.3 percent in 2021 from 20.1 percent in 2020, while the number of banked Filipino adults almost doubled to 56 percent in 2021 from 29 percent in 2019.