BancNet bags e-trading platform deal

MANILA, Philippines - BancNet, the country’s largest electronic banking consortium, has been chosen as the payment gateway for the Philippine National Single Window (PNSW), the government’s newly launched electronic trading platform.

The PNSW would facilitate the online filing and payment of trade-related permits, licenses and certifications for 40 participating government agencies.

With this new system, filing and payment will be totally paperless and processing time becomes faster.

Payment can be made through BancNet’s secured payment gateway that allows businessmen to pay from the comfort of their homes or offices.

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) was the first government agency to implement the PNSW. According to NTC deputy commissioner Delilah Deles, “the electronic payment scheme will reduce processing time from a week to just an hour up to a day” for licensing transactions. 

The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) also recently launched its e-Payment and e-Permit processes under the PNSW. These aim to facilitate faster and cheaper transactions for the importation and exportation of sugar and sugar-based products. Exporters and importers can submit documents and pay the processing fees online.

BancNet president Robert P. Blas said that it is optimistic that once fully implemented by the target government agencies, the project would greatly contribute to more efficient and transparent operations in our government.

BancNet is already the payment gateway for taxes due to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and for members’ contributions and loan repayments of the Social Security System (SSS). It is the only electronic banking consortium accredited as such.

Aside from BIR and SSS, clients and automated teller machine (ATM) cardholders of participating member banks can also make various payments online, including utility bills and purchases from various online merchants such as airline companies Cebu Pacific Air, Philippine Airlines and Zest Air.

BancNet has 98 member banks and affiliated networks with 8,189 ATMs and more than 21 million ATM cardholders nationwide.