Amando M Tetangco, Jr: Geared up for global reform and regional
integration
Speech by Mr Amando M Tetangco, Jr, Governor of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the
central bank of the Philippines), at the FT-First Metro Philippines Investment Summit, Makati,
20 May 2015.
* * *
I am pleased to have this opportunity to share my thoughts with you this afternoon. At last
year's Summit, we tackled the "new wave of volatilities" that we were then experiencing. You
may recall that the markets (both global and our own) were at that time still internalizing the
"reality" of Fed taper. In the interim, however, a more upbeat outlook on the US economy has
surfaced as well as significantly lower oil prices. Recently, improvements have also been
noted in Europe and Japan.
Domestically, there have also been quite a number of positive developments. Private
consumption has remained buoyant, inflation has been kept within target, current account
surpluses have been sustained and the banking system has stayed sound. Against this
backdrop, the IMF, the World Bank and the ADB have all projected strong GDP growth for
2015 and 2016 for the Philippines.
Moody's backed these up by describing our banks as being "well positioned to manage
unexpected downward pressures". While we await an update from S&P after its recent due
diligence, Fitch has highlighted the "sound liquidity, high capital buffers and stable asset
quality" of our banks.
All things considered, the Philippine financial system is in a good place today. But we can't
afford to be complacent. Not at all.
For this afternoon, let's consider two things that are top-of-mind of the market that could
change the situation: 1) the global reform agenda, and 2) regional financial integration.
First, the global reform agenda. We have seen the reform agenda take shape - from banking
to securities, insurance, infrastructure, governance and market conduct. All these reforms
are meant to institutionalize a "new normal" under a revised set of global best practices and
minimum standards. We all appreciate how different this new normal is against the "older"
ways of doing thing. I fully understand that making this transition is a challenge for
stakeholders, regulators and the regulated alike.
The principles underlying the various reform components, however, make a clear case for
why there is a need for change. As responsive and responsible agents, it is incumbent upon
us to adopt and adapt.
We adopt the higher norms prescribed for good governance, risk management, market
conduct and consumer protection since these define our new market architecture. However,
we are equally practical and pragmatic in recognizing idiosyncratic conditions that require us
to adapt the global standards in ways that better serve our prudential purposes.
Moving on to the second issue. We are seeing regional financial integration materialize into a
defined reality. What was perhaps a faint prospect at an earlier time and was hardly
discussed publicly, we now hear of promises of improved well-being for financial consumers
and prospects of larger markets for service providers under the certainty of enhanced
competition.
The integration timelines have been set and how we handle ourselves against those
milestone dates will greatly determine the macro-financial landscape for generations to
come. In banking, we have a few short years before Qualified ASEAN Banks (QABs) may
enter our market. The integration of ASEAN insurance markets has a more assertive timeline
while capital market development has a definitive vision for a harmonized framework for
cross-border securities transactions. None of these integrated markets could exist, however,
without the necessary pipelines and so interoperable and/or interlinked trading, clearing and
settlement systems are likewise a necessity.
As you can see, ladies and gentlemen, there is much that lies ahead of us. The new normal
has set the bar higher in the manner regulators supervise the financial market and how
market participants conduct themselves.
Against the certainty of change, are we ready?
Thankfully, the Philippine financial system has the advantage of being in a position of
strength. But, we have repeatedly argued that this strength is neither permanent nor
absolute. Change is a certainty because the needs of financial consumers evolve with time.
Markets, in turn, offer a richer menu of products and services that address the evolving
broader needs of financial consumers. And on top of these, we have seen in recent times
that markets sometimes need a fresh-but-major reboot and that too will certainly call for
change.
These changes are most apparent in the recent legislative and policy initiatives to further
open our banking market to foreign interests. I am often asked whether the Philippines is
ready for banking integration. Although it is not as often raised, the accompanying question is
why we should be part of such integration efforts.
Let me address the latter question first as a prelude to the former. The answer really may just
boil down to two numbers: 600 and 31.
The latest figures suggest that the world generally saves at a rate of roughly 20% of GDP.
ASEAN, however, has a Gross Domestic Saving rate of 31%. Applying these figures to the
USD2.395 trillion GDP of ASEAN in 2013 , we have ASEAN saving at USD742.5 billion of
which USD263.5 billion (i.e., 11% of GDP) can be seen as a saving that is higher than the
norm for the rest of the world.
These are not small numbers, a good portion of which is invested outside of ASEAN. When
combined with the estimated ASEAN population of over 600 million individuals, a more
organized ASEAN financial market does seem to make its own case.
Preparing for new foreign interests and added competition
This brings me back to the first question: how do we prepare for the new foreign interests
coming into our banking industry? Perhaps, with one eye equally focused on trying to
mobilize a portion of the USD742.5 billion in ASEAN saving in 2013 alone?
Unfortunately, there is no switch that we can conveniently toggle between "on" and "off" for
this. The best preparation is simply to have each bank operate with due recognition of the
impact of financial risks on its own balance sheet and that of the system as a whole.
This combines 1) the effective management of risk exposures and the enforcement of a
binding governance culture at the bank level and 2) the regulatory oversight and mitigation of
systemic pressures that may be developing. This is the specific context of what we
euphemistically refer to as an "enabled environment". It is simply a regulatory framework that
deliberately nurtures the creativity of providers to deliver innovative product and services
while giving regulators enough leeway to intervene to address conflicts of interests, including
the possibility that what may be good for individual banks may not necessarily be beneficial
to the system at large.
In the capital market, we need to strengthen and finalize our pricing conventions so that there
are no material gaps between reference rates and market valuation. We strongly subscribe
to price discovery and we aspire to implement the principles on financial benchmarks
soonest.
Market infrastructure, of course, plays a central role for the efficient transfer of funds and
settlement of obligations, whether onshore or offshore. The BSP is playing a very prominent
role in regional and global discussions to calibrate the global OTC Derivatives infrastructure
requirements to better reflect the less active markets in Asia. Currently, financial regulators
are actively reviewing our payments and settlement system so that a harmonized domestic
structure puts us in a viable position to be a strong node within the ASEAN network. Indeed,
to the extent possible, we lend our voice in global and regional forums where market reforms
are either being designed or discussed for cross-border application.
To be sure, we will not forget our financial consumer. The Financial Consumer Protection
Framework recently approved by the Monetary Board is a milestone in what can prudentially
be expected by consumers and of financial service providers. The fact that a recent World
Bank-funded review describes our consumer protection framework as one of the best in the
world is a major strength as we move forward.
Collaboration and cooperation
Ladies and gentlemen, much has already been put on our collective plate but the reality is
that much more can be expected ahead of us. It is not our intention to push all of these to our
supervised entities for them to deal with on their own. Critical collaboration and cooperation
is necessary because these are major developments that will dictate the market landscape
for decades ahead.
This extent of collaboration is an essential facet of how we got to this position of strength.
Now, we have to build upon that collaboration and that position of strength for us to move
forward. The winds of change have brought both the global reforms and regional integration
into their respective mature stages and it is now the challenge of execution that is before us.
We may not always agree with the specific form of the global and regional changes but,
perhaps, we can agree on the principles for which change is being espoused. Borrowing
from the website of the Financial Stability Board, we continuously need to build resilient
financial institutions, make markets safer, instill more effective supervision and institutionalize
more effective resolution regimes. In other words, we need to uphold transparency, be
mindful of contagion and concentration, and monitor simple risks that can subtly transform
into systemic vulnerabilities.
Ladies and gentlemen, vigilance has been the seed for which we are now reaping the fruit of
macro-financial strength. Being continually cognizant of the need for such vigilance and
adhering to the discipline of governance are the keys to continued resilience. These are the
responsible investments we need to make and with contributions from all stakeholders, we
can expect a better and stronger financial market ahead.
Thank you and good afternoon.