Senator Win Gatchalian will ask the Senate to probe the proliferation of loan sharks and other online lending schemes of some companies not under the supervision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
He said the inquiry intends to study remedial legislation to address possible gaps in the existing policies being enforced by government regulating bodies and other concerned agencies.
This came following the emergence of online cash loan services of unlicensed lenders, according to Gatchalian, adding that the BSP should advise the public not to transact with these types of predatory lenders.
Gatchalian, vice chairperson of the Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies, said his office continues to receive complaints from victims of online lending companies and lending apps, as most of them claimed to have suffered various forms of grave threats, intimidation, and public shaming from debt collectors.
The SEC in December last year revoked the certificate of authority of online firm Super Cash Lending Corp. after it was found to have engaged in unfair debt collection practices.
The National Privacy Commission (NPC) last February recommended the prosecution of Fynamics Lending Inc., the operator of the PondoPeso online lending app, for harassing and public-shaming delinquent borrowers and for violating the data privacy law.
Gatchalian already sought the enactment of the proposed Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
His Senate Bill No. 1366 prohibits debt collectors from harassing or threatening the debtor and his or her family with death or physical injuries, inflict harm on the debtor’s reputation or give misleading claims that non-payment of debt will result to arrest, imprisonment, garnishment, or sale of any property.
Creditors and debt collectors are also barred from accessing personal information of the debtor without the consent of the concerned person.