RCBC’s 10% market share in remittance business secured

The Rizal Commercial and Banking Corp. (RCBC) is confident it will maintain its 10-percent market share in the billion dollar remittance business this year.

"Anything bigger is a bonus, and no one is complaining," Cynthia Paras-Santos, senior vice president and head of TeleMoney Group of the Rizal Commercial and Banking Corp. (RCBC) said during the formal signing of an agreement between Travelex Money Transfer (TMT), local subsidiary Asian FX Money Exchange, and the RCBC TeleMoney, the remittance arm of the bank.

Santos added that their 10-percent market share is "pure" overseas Filipino worker (OFW) remittances as against reports by other banks which mixes their OFW remittances with Filipino migrant workers.

Of its total remittance business, the bulk or 40 percent emanates from the Middle East particularly Saudi Arabia.

Another 20 to 25 percent comes from the US and Canada, 20 percent from Europe, and 15 percent from the Asia and the Pacific area including Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, Brunei, and Singapore.

RCBC TeleMoney relies on over 500 remittance centers, agents and tie ups in 24 countries. These include bank and non-bank financial institutions in each of the countries.

"We have alliances with Moneygram, now Travelex, huge banks like the Arab National Bank, and 18 agents and money transfer firms in the United Arab Emirates," the RCBC TeleMoney head said.

Locally, it relies on the 289 branches of RCBC and RCBC Savings Bank as well as alliances with local money transfer agents as well as the distribution networks of other business including pawn shops and convinience stores.

Remittances result in fee-based and foreign exchange earnings for banks. It also has indirect benefits or opportunities for businesses directly or for its subsidiaries.

It forged various alliances with property developers, real estate agents, and construction firms for businesses with OFWs and their beneficiaries. It also helps RCBC get rid of some of its bad assets or real and other properties owned or acquired (ROPOA).

Subsidiaries and sister companies also take advantage of the remittance business including life and non-life insurance (Great Pacific Life Insurance or Grepalife and the Malayan Insurance Co., respectively), pre-need (Pacific Plans Inc.), trust funds under RCBC, and mutual funds (Grepalife Asset Management Corp.).