by south korea at 300 bps. also, we sold fx reserves just like thailand and korea in that regard, [ on how much they sold ] relative to our fx reserves. of course, the other tool is, we tell markets what we intend to do and why. and, i think, this is one of the reasons the bangko sentral has been quite effective [ in inflation targeting ] over the years. well, a recent example of this stronger guidance was provided in last week's bankers'night, where i said, " we will reduce the rrr [ reserve requirement ratio ]. " we hope, in return, the banks will waive all fees on small transactions when people make bank - to - bank payments. from what i hear from the banking association, they are receptive to this. i am looking forward to more and more digital payments, especially by the poor, using their accounts, which have grown significantly because of instapay and so on. managing foreign exchange pressures of course, my speech will not be complete if i do not tell you that for a while, there was fx pressure [ on the peso ], when people began to taunt us, " nagse - senior citizen na'yung peso kasi 60. " although my response is : what is the difference between 60. 1 and 59. 9? but, i guess, [ market ] psychology, no? 4 / 6 bis - central bankers'speeches as you can see, a combination of the things we did, plus the fact that the us is now saying that the jumbo increases are over, has caused the dollar to weaken, which means the peso has appreciated. as you can see in the next chart, if your point of view is starting from november [ 2022 ], the picture is now the opposite [ the peso has since strengthened ]. the slowdown in the pacing of us policy tightening has eased the pressure on the peso. on a year - to - date basis, the peso is the second most - appreciated currency in the region after indonesia's rupiah, but we will continue to monitor the situation. robust external accounts provide cushion against spillovers as i already said, our advantage is that we are actually getting quite a bit of net fdi, but, of course, we want that to increase even further. by the way, the feedback i am getting everywhere is that the president's shift in foreign

4 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches our experience with covid - 19 highlighted the increasing importance of digital transactions. the volume and value of the combined transactions of pesonet and instapay surged during the lockdown. a comparison between the two - and - a - half months duration prior to the lockdown from january 1 to march 16 and the period under lockdown from march 17 to may 31 indicates that the combined transactions of both pesonet and instapay rose by over 70 percent in volume and 42 percent in value. by contrast, the volume and value of check payments and atm withdrawals declined. needless to say that looking forward, we will not only expand the reach of digital payments, but enhance its efficiency. efficiency in retail payments is really about speed, convenience and affordability, which can clearly be supported by a shift to electronic payments. the bsp envisions an accelerated uptake of e - payment services, through digital platforms like the instapay and pesonet, in the next three years. it is our goal to have half of financial transactions — in volume and value — be in digital form by 2023, if not sooner. we have gained significant strides in this direction through the adoption of the national qr code standard, as well as the use of online payment facilities for government transactions. on the legislative front, the bsp will push for the passage of the following priority bills : amendment to republic act nos. 1405 and 6426, the laws pertaining to the secrecy of bank deposits ; amendment to republic act no. 9510 or the “ credit information system act ; amendment to republic act no. 10000 or the “ agri - agra law ” ; financial consumer protection bill ; financial institutions strategic transfer ( fist ) ; government financial institutions unified initiatives to distressed enterprises for economic recovery ( guide ) ; and bayanihan ii or to recover as one act to summarize, allow me to highlight three main points from the presentation : first, the philippines entered into the global pandemic with stronger macroeconomic position compared with its regional peers. the country is well - situated to re - start its economic growth and development process. second, in response to the covid - 19 pandemic, the bsp implemented policy measures intended to reassure markets, restore business confidence, and ensure quick recovery once the lockdowns are lifted. however, the decision to unwind covid - 19 policy responses will be gradual, pr