The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has advanced another P300 billion to the national government (NG) to help it finance its various budgetary programs this year.
BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno bared this development at the Philippine Economic Briefing held at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) where he said the policy-making Monetary Board (MB) approved the so-called provisional advance at the MB meeting on March 24 this year.
According to him, the central bank’s charter, or the New Central Bank Act, allows it to extend provisional financing to NG at a fixed percentage of its revenues.
That only P300 billion had been extended to NG at this point is an indication of the improving revenue generation of the various collection arms of government, and from such other sources of financing government operations such as sub-market official development assistance or ODA loans.
At the height of the pandemic in 2021, the BSP actually extended a series of shorty-dated provisional advances of P540 billion, he said.
Diokno said the provisional loan is due on June 12 or just before a new administration takes over.
