The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Tuesday ordered banks to strengthen their surveillance and monitoring systems against vote buying and selling ahead of the May 2025 elections.
BSP Memorandum No. M-2025-006, signed on March 23, 2025, instructs BSP-supervised financial institutions (BSFIs) to take steps to counter the abuse or misuse of digital channels such as online banking and mobile wallet applications, for vote buying and selling.
The BSP instructed BSFIs to ensure that customer onboarding processes, fraud management systems (FMS) and account and transaction monitoring settings could mitigate possible influx of fraudulent accounts and transactions during the election season.
The BSP suggested that BSFIs watch for red flags, such as a surge in account registrations in areas known for vote buying or selling, large cash transactions during the election period, unusual transaction patterns and high volume/value in cash-in or cash-out channels.
The BSP memorandum, similar to memoranda issued in previous election cycles, responds to the call from the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) through Resolution No. 11104, dated Jan. 28, 2025, for stricter mechanisms against vote buying and selling.
The BSP said it is collaborating with COMELEC and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to address election-related vote buying or selling via financial platforms.