Apart from annually doing the Pamaskong Handog to honor overseas Filipinos (OF) and their families, BDO Remit has another advocacy that espouses financial education zeroing on the value of saving and investing.
Genie T. Gloria, senior vice president and head of remittance of BDO Unibank, Inc. said financial education is an invaluable gift to give the OF market and their beneficiaries because there will come a point where these workers abroad will return to their home country and choose to become entrepreneurs.
“Raising their financial knowledge should start at the onset, meaning, we teach them what they can do with their hard-earned money by allocating a portion to savings and looking for investments which can serve their long-term goals,” said Gloria.
BDO Remit visits universities to teach young adults, whose parents may be an OF, to take care of the money remitted to them. It also does financial education activities in various barangays to orient people, particularly the unbanked, about the importance of being a part of the formal banking system.
“Apart from these efforts, we also continue to participate in the pre-departure orientation seminars (PDOS) done by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), by helping the departing OFs to have a better financial behavior,” noted Gloria.
Since starting the financial education advocacy in 2014, she said BDO Remit has noticed a significant improvement in the saving approach of the OFs as indicated by the growth in their monthly savings.
“They are saving more now and they know their priorities and goals. For us, this improvement is a testament that this advocacy of ours is working well for them,” added Gloria.
BDO Remit currently has two million BDO Kabayan Savings account holders, a product it introduced in 2006 to encourage OFs and their beneficiaries to save and eventually allow them to qualify for other banking products such as loans, as their lives flourish.
Celebrating the OFs and families
Pamaskong Handog is BDO Remit’s way of giving back and recognizing OFs for their trust and loyalty as BDO Kabayan Savings account holders.
“With many overseas Filipinos coming home during the holiday, we take the season as an opportunity to honor and pay tribute to their hard work and sacrifice to care for their families even if it means being away from them and taking on unique jobs in other countries,” said Gloria.
Now on its 8th year, Pamaskong Handog will be held separately in Cebu, Davao, and Pampanga this month, with SM hosting the venues.
“We are also grateful for our other partners Kultura, Miniso, Jollibee and Goldilocks, as well as WorldRemit, MoneyGram, Western Union, and Small World for being one with us in supporting our overseas Filipinos and their families through Pamaskong Handog,” she added.
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About BDO Remit
BDO Remit is the global remittance service brand of BDO, the largest bank in the Philippines. Through BDO Remit, BDO was named the 2017 “Commercial Bank that Generated the Largest Overseas Filipino Remittances” at the 2018 Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Stakeholders Awards. BDO Unibank has won the award from 2008 to 2010, and again from 2013 to 2016.
In Asia, BDO Remit has a total six (6) remittance offices located in Hong Kong, Macau and Japan; three (3) representative offices in Singapore, Taiwan and Korea; and a full branch in Hong Kong. In the Middle East, BDO Remit has one (1) representative office in the United Arab Emirates and three (3) remittance offices in North America, two (2) of which are located in California, USA and one (1) in Toronto, Canada. In Europe, BDO Remit has presence in the United Kingdom, France, Ireland, Italy, and Spain, with a total of nine (9) remittance offices in the said countries.
More than BDO Remit’s role to transmit remittances from Filipinos overseas to their beneficiaries in the Philippines, the brand strives to uplift the market through innovative product and service offerings, value-added product features, loyalty rewards, special events, as well as partnerships with various institutions for greater customer reach both locally and abroad.
BDO Remit’s flagship service—BDO Kabayan Savings—is the heart of the bank’s service to the Overseas Filipinos and their families. Through this service, customers receive remittances in a fast, safe and convenient manner, and at the same time, are entitled to unique and long-term benefits that aim to protect their future such as free life and accident insurance.
About BDO Unibank, Inc.
BDO is a full-service universal bank that provides a wide range of corporate and retail banking services. These services include traditional loan and deposit products, as well as treasury, trust and investments, investment banking, private banking, rural banking, cash management, leasing and finance, remittance, insurance, retail cash cards, credit card services, and stock brokerage services.
BDO has one of the largest distribution networks, with more than 1,300 operating branches and over 4,400 ATMs nationwide. It also has full-service branches in Hong Kong and Singapore as well as 21 overseas remittance and representative offices in Asia, Europe, North America, and the Middle East.
BDO ranked as the largest bank in terms of total assets, loans, deposits, and trust funds under management based on published statements of condition as of June 30, 2019. For more information, please visit www.bdo.com.ph.