RBAP-MABS trains rural bankers in fraud and delinquency management tools

February 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Fraud & DQ Wshop 1

The USAID-supported RBAP-MABS Program, with its commitment of continuously providing technical assistance to its partner rural banks in enhancing their microfinance operations, facilitated a Microfinance Fraud and Delinquency Management Workshop last February 9-11, 2011. Conducted in Cabanatuan City, the training workshop was attended by 12 participants composed mostly of microfinance supervisors and internal auditors from five Luzon rural banks: First Macro Bank, Rural Bank of Solano, Rural Bank of Gattaran, Community Bank ( RB Alfonso) and GM Bank as the host bank for the 3-day activity.

The participants received training and workshop sessions on the different faces of fraud and its prevention, detection and management. Mr. Justino A. Guarin Jr., Internal Auditor of Community Bank, shared: “This is the first time that I got an idea on how to go about auditing microfinance operations. I realized that it is very much specialized compared with auditing regular banking operations. One should know the nitty-gritty of the microfinance operations before doing the audit.” [Read more...]

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Central Bank of Namibia studies MABS Approach to mobile phone banking

November 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Representatives from the Banking Supervision Department of the Central Bank of Namibia in South Africa visited the country on November 15-19 to study Philippine microfinance under the Knowledge Exchange Program of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The group, headed by Department Director Romeo Nel, was eager to learn the mobile phone banking experience of the country, as well as the regulatory policies of the BSP. Also in the study group were Mr. Brian Gei-Khoibeb, Deputy Director for Payment System, and Mr. Sergio de Sousa, Payment System Analyst.
On November 18, the group visited First Macro Bank’s main office in Pateros City, as well as its other banking office (OBO) in Antipolo City. They observed the bank’s operations, visited its clients, and studied its lending procedures and mobile phone banking operations. They also witnessed how the clients paid their loan amortization using mobile phone banking through the GCASH platform.
The USAID-supported RBAP-MABS Program gave a presentation on its mobile phone banking initiative, orienting the delegates on the MABS-designed mobile banking services. To date, MABS has already helped accredit over 65 rural banks with approximately 950 branches and other banking offices offering MPBS via the GCASH platform.

CB of Namibia visitRepresentatives from the Banking Supervision Department of the Central Bank of Namibia in South Africa visited the country on November 15-19 to study Philippine microfinance under the Knowledge Exchange Program of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The group, headed by Department Director Romeo Nel, was eager to learn the mobile phone banking experience of the country, as well as the regulatory policies of the BSP. Also in the study group were Mr. Brian Gei-Khoibeb, Deputy Director for Payment System, and Mr. Sergio de Sousa, Payment System Analyst.

On November 18, the group visited First Macro Bank’s main office in Pateros City, as well as its other banking office (OBO) in Antipolo City. They observed the bank’s operations, visited its clients, and studied its lending procedures and mobile phone banking operations. They also witnessed how the clients paid their loan amortization using mobile phone banking through the GCASH platform. [Read more...]

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Going green to greener pasture

November 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mr. Ismael Adiaton, First Macro Bank Microentrepreneur client
2010 Citi Microentrepreneur of the Year Special Awardee for Green and Sustainable Enterprises

When his hardware store in Taytay, Rizal was ransacked several years ago, Ismael Adiaton felt depression overtake him. He had lost the business that cost him 13 years of hard work in the Middle East. He had lost the dream that he hoped would give his family a better life.
Disheartened as he was, he struggled to move on and invested in another business: construction. However, his partner ran off, taking his P500,000 and the hope of salvaging their livelihood.
Twice beaten down, Mang Ismael still did not give up. Soon, he put up a junkshop with a friend and took care of the shop’s operations. Every midnight, he would go around the neighborhood with his wife and his helper, checking piles of garbage for recyclable scrap metal. Little by little, his new business grew. When one of his workers suggested buying equipment for can recycling, he saw new opportunities for his junkshop business.
“Junkshop business had a lot of competition,” Mang Ismael said in Filipino during an interview with the Microfinance Council of the Philippines, Inc. (MCPI). “I saw the potential with cans and there were only a few players. I didn’t find another business where the demand is greater than the supply.”
Slowly, he converted his junkshop into a can recycling plant. They collected and processed cans, helping not only his family but also the environment. He availed of loans from First Macro Bank’s Angono branch and used them to expand his business. He was able to invest in more machines, including 4 big power press units, 5 small power press units, 2 vehicles and 2 computers. He was also able to put up a bakery, a sari-sari (variety) store, and a carinderia.
A man who never lost faith and kept on working his hardest, he now shares his blessings with other people, including his 21 employees to whom he regularly preaches the Gospel and provides free meals and lodging.
In recognition of his success, perseverance and contribution to the environment, Mang Ismael was awarded the 2010 Citi Microentrepreneur of the Year Special Award for Green and Sustainable Enterprises. He was among the ten Filipino microentrepreneurs who were recognized on November 17 at the BSP Compound in Manila for their outstanding performance in their businesses.
This year’s annual ceremony marks the 8th run of this prestigious award sponsored by Citibank and MCPI, and supported by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The nationwide search was open to all microfinance organizations representing the rural banking sector, credit cooperatives and microfinance NGOs, but only ten awardees were selected from the various nominations to represent the “New Heroes of Today”, as BSP Governor Amando Tentangco called them in his keynote speech. All awardees received a cash prize and a trophy. The account officer and branch managing the account of the awardees also received cash prizes and plaques.

Ismael Adiaton and wifeWhen his hardware store in Taytay, Rizal was ransacked several years ago, Ismael Adiaton felt depression overtake him. He had lost the business that cost him 13 years of hard work in the Middle East. He had lost the dream that he hoped would give his family a better life.

Disheartened as he was, he struggled to move on and invested in another business: construction. However, his partner ran off, taking his P500,000 and the hope of salvaging their livelihood.

Twice beaten down, Mang Ismael still did not give up. Soon, he put up a junkshop with a friend and took care of the shop’s operations. Every midnight, he would go around the neighborhood with his wife and his helper, checking piles of garbage for recyclable scrap metal. Little by little, his new business grew. When one of his workers suggested buying equipment for can recycling, he saw new opportunities for his junkshop business. [Read more...]

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Credit Scoring System, Netbooks, and new Mobile Phone Banking App introduced at the RBAP-MABS National Roundtable

June 29, 2010 By 1 Comment
Several technological developments for support and expansion of microfinance services were presented during the 2010 RBAP-MABS National Roundtable Conference held in Manila on June 2-3, 2010.
Ms. Rebecca Hughes, Philippines Country Director of Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), first introduced a credit scoring model and automated loan application process via netbooks. The new loan application process via netbooks allows loan Account Officers to quickly and easily upload and prepare cashflow lending applications from the field. In addition, IPA has also added a credit scoring system into the application to better predict the borrower’s likelihood of repayment based on information such as cash flow, debt capacity and past repayment patterns of comparable borrowers. For the staff and clients, the netbooks help speed up the processing of loan applications in the field.
While Ms. Hughes cautioned that not every bank will be able to implement the credit scoring system overnight, all banks can benefit from the automated loan applications via netbooks. This can also provide banks with the first step in collecting data that can one day be utilized by the bank to implement a credit scoring system.
Next, Mr. Reggie Ocampo, President of First Macro Bank, presented his bank’s experience with implementing the loan application process in partnership with IPA via netbooks. His Account Officers found that this system greatly improves their productivity by 1) making it easier to facilitate client documentary requirements, 2) significantly reducing paperwork and 3) increasing the speed of credit and background reporting. Thanks to the system’s worksheets with automated calculations. Additionally, the objectivity of the credit scoring model reduces the reliance on supervisor and credit committee reviews. Account officers reported that clients are actually impressed with the netbook technology, seeing the bank as more professional. Mr. Ocampo stressed that a credit scoring system, however, cannot replace a skilled and responsible Account Officer. He added that it only provides another tool in the final decision making process of loan approvals.
Finally, Ms. Christine Amarra, Program Manager of Blueblade Technologies Inc., introduced a new mobile phone banking application specifically designed for MABS mobile phone banking services via GCASH. Currently, bank account information must be inputted each time a user transacts via the GCASH menu, which may result in the entry of inaccurate information. Blueblade’s new mobile phone banking application solves this problem by allowing the clients to store their bank account information, the bank’s mobile number, and the transaction codes for each specific mobile phone banking service in a secure java application on the phone. Additional features include the ability to store multiple banks and accounts in a user’s profile as well as an easy-to-use interface. Ms. Amarra demonstrated the application live at the end of the panel session. Blueblade will be testing this application in an agreement reached with RBAP-MABS. The plan is to offer this program to all interested GCASH-accredited rural banks in the near future.
Are your Account Officers using Netbooks for electronic loan applications? Do you think the mobile phone banking application that stores most of the bank account details securely on the phone as well as automates the transaction process would be useful to your employees and your clients? Share your thoughts and experiences by replying to this post.
Until next time, Mabuhay ang Technology!

Several technological developments for support and expansion of microfinance services were presented during the 2010 RBAP-MABS National Roundtable Conference held in Manila on June 2-3, 2010.

Rebecca HughesMs. Rebecca Hughes, Philippines Country Director of Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), first introduced a credit scoring model and automated loan application process via netbooks. The new loan application process via netbooks allows loan Account Officers to quickly and easily upload and prepare loan applications from the field. In addition, IPA has also added a credit scoring system into the application to better predict the borrower’s likelihood of repayment based on certain indicators such as the borrower’s background, cash flow, debt capacity and past repayment patterns of comparable borrowers. For the staff and clients, the netbooks help speed up the processing of loan applications in the field.

While Ms. Hughes cautioned that not every bank will be able to implement the credit scoring system overnight, all banks can benefit from the automated loan applications via netbooks. This can also provide banks with the first step in collecting data that can one day be utilized by the bank to implement a credit scoring system.

[Read more...]

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Rural banks and insurance companies partnering to offer microinsurance: Experiences from the field

June 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The second panel session on microinsurance during the RBAP-MABS roundtable highlighted the perspectives of rural banks and insurance companies in various strategies to address microinsurance as both groups gear up to work together to offer these services nationwide.

Dinah VeralloDinah Verallo of FAIR Bank discussed her keys to successfully implementing a microinsurance strategy. The fear of the unknown that comes with all significant changes can be mitigated by a disciplined research phase, where both the external market and the internal operations of the organization must be studied. A key step in this phase is researching a microinsurance provider partner. The focus of the implementation phase is on the infrastructure lay-out, training and developing the microinsurance partnership. The infrastructure lay-out includes detailed plans for product development, communications and information systems. Ms. Verallo explains that internal training is also a key component in managing change, ensuring that employees are well-prepared for the new claims procedures and they understand the microinsurance regulatory environment. Additionally, finding the right microinsurance partner that endorses the bank’s value proposition and is willing to support all the promotional campaigns of the bank, Ms. Verallo noted, is an important part of a successful partnership.

[Read more...]
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