Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCOM) has relented and waived InstaPay transfer fees effective Aug. 1, joining a growing number of banks that have eliminated charges for online fund transfers.
The bank said customers using its POP Personal and PBCOMobile platforms can now transfer funds to other banks via InstaPay without charge.
PBCOM said a P0.01 fee may temporarily appear on transactions because of a system limitation but will be automatically refunded on the next banking day.
The lender had previously charged P10 per InstaPay transaction after lowering the fee from P15 last month. It had been among the few remaining financial institutions that continued to impose InstaPay fees.
With PBCOM’s move, the Rural Bank of Guinobatan Inc. and CARD MRI Rizal Bank Inc. remain among the institutions that still charge for electronic fund transfers. Rural Bank of Guinobatan imposes a P10 fee for both InstaPay and PESONet transactions, while CARD MRI Rizal charges P9 for either service.
More than 20 banks and financial institutions have already waived fees for both InstaPay and PESONet transfers.
The fee waivers follow the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ issuance of Circular No. 1238, which calls for person-to-person electronic fund transfer charges to be fair, transparent and reflective of the cost of providing the service.
“Zero InstaPay fund transfers are here at last,” PBCOM said in a social media post announcing the change.
