Senate President Pro Tempore Ping Lacson lauded the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas over the weekend for tightening the rules on large cash transactions by capping withdrawals at P500,000 per banking day.
Lacson, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigating the corruption behind anomalous flood control projects, said this will make things more inconvenient for both the givers and takers of bribes.
“This will make it cumbersome to deliver large volumes of cash in SOP’s, commissions and payoffs.”
“Salute to BSP Governor (Eli Jr.) Remolona for issuing this circular. This will make it cumbersome to deliver large volumes of cash in SOP’s, commissions and payoffs from one corrupt government contractor or influence peddler to another corrupt government official,” the veteran legislator said on his X account.
The BSP recently announced that it issued new regulations on large value cash transactions “to reduce money laundering and other risks linked to the use of cash”.
Under Circular No. 1218 series of 2025 issued September 18, large value transactions above ₱500,000.00 or its equivalent in foreign currency must be conducted through traceable channels such as checks, online fund transfers, direct credit to deposit accounts, or digital payments.
It said the same limit applies to cash transactions in equivalent foreign currencies, and that the limit may be reached in a single transaction or series of transactions within one banking day.
Under the circular, BSP-supervised financial institutions must conduct enhanced due diligence, and even file a suspicious transaction report, in case of withdrawals beyond the limit. They may allow the larger payout if the customer provides additional documents or proof of a legitimate business purpose.
Lacson pointed out that during his investigation into the flood control projects, he encountered huge bribes to corrupt officials, including one-time cash deliveries amounting to as high as P457 million.
“Magiging cumbersome na ‘yan sa maglalagay. Araw-araw maghuhulog siya ng P500,000.”
“Magiging cumbersome na ‘yan sa maglalagay. Araw-araw maghuhulog siya ng P500,000. Kung P30 milyon ang lagay, ilang araw ‘yan, masusundan siya ng Anti-Money Laundering Council at ng bank official (This will make things cumbersome for bribe givers and takers. Imagine the giver of a P30-million bribe having to deposit P500,000 every day. That would make it easier for the Anti-Money Laundering Council and bank officials to keep track of them),” he said in an interview on One News.
