Bill to regulate ATM fees filed

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MANILA – Legislators have filed a bill to regulate the transaction charges of automated teller machines (ATM) in the country.

Following the recent announcement banks to increase interbank ATM charges, Bayan Muna Representatives Carlos Zarate and Neri Colmenares re-filed House Bill 2015 that “seeks to provide for a standard rate of transaction charges on ATMs and require the posting of said fees on ATM screens prior to the completion of any transaction” to protect consumers from hidden charges of banks.

“Banks already earn profits when the salaries and wages of workers are coursed through them by employers, they should not further extract profit from the workers who need every peso of their earnings,” Zarate said in a statement.

He also urged the Congress to investigate and determine if the increase is necessary.

Under HB 2105, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will need to create rules and regulations detailing the standardization of fees.

“We want the BSP to explain even last year’s ATM increase, particularly by the BPI,” Zarate added.

On Thursday, BSP’s Monetary Board had approved a memorandum to prevent banks from increasing their charges.

BSP added that they understand the need for banks to recover their spending, but there is also a need to protect their customers.
Earlier, BOD Unibank Inc., which is owned by Henry Sy, announced that the fee increase “is an industry-wide development to basically cover the cost of operating the ATMs.”

Banks do not charge depositors for ATM use, but there is a usage fee of P10 to P15 if they withdraw from other bank network.

The increase to interbank ATM transactions are as follows:

Meanwhile, Metrobank announced that they will postpone the new withdrawal charges “until further notice.”