Press Release
October 18, 2008

ROXAS SEEKS DOUBLING OF INSURANCE FOR BANK DEPOSITS

Liberal President Senator Mar Roxas today sought additional insurance coverage for bank depositors from P250,000 to P500,000 to protect savings amid threats of a global financial meltdown.

"We are seeing just the beginning of hard times. We have seen the collapse of major institutions in Wall Street, and there is a clear need for greater discipline in the markets. Locally, our people need assurance that their lifelong savings are safe as we find more lasting solutions that will protect our citizens from this global financialcontagion," Roixas said.

Roxas, however, said this should be a temporary measure to provide stability to the markets, and that the old insurance coverage should be re-established after three years.

"An increased coverage for three years is long enough for the system to stabilize. Hopefully, by the end of this period, the global financial markets would have stabilized and it would be safe to go back to a maximum coverage of P250,000," he said.

Other measures Roxas pushed for to cushion the impact of the crisis were:

1. A 90-day moratorium on foreclosures, to protect those unable to pay off their loans or mortgages;

2. Elimination of penalties for early withdrawal of bank deposits; and

3. Corporate income tax credit for each additional permanent employee hired, as an incentive for employers to provide job security.

He has also pushed for P100 billion of realignments in the 2009 budget to focus on food security, job security, education and health, and protection of the country's financial institutions.

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