By Maricel E. Burgonio, Reporter
Citibank has expanded to consumer marketing and is targeting overseas Filipino workers.
From April to July this year, the bank waives its remittance fees as an introductory offer to Filipino workers in the United States.
Citibank has initially offered remittance service to the Filipinos working in California, where 50 percent of the 2.6 million Filipino immigrants and OFWs can be found.
The bank offers a fixed remittance charge of $8 per transaction, which is competitively lower than the pricing scheme of other local banks, which ranges up to $12 per transaction.
The move of Citibank is in accord with the wish of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to encourage more OFWs to course their remittances through banks by reducing their remittance fees.
The Citibank offer allows its Filipino customers in the US to open a Citibank access account without additional cost and minimum balance requirements. A money card, to which the account holder can transfer funds, will be delivered to the beneficiary in the Philippines.
The beneficiaries can withdraw the remitted account from any of the 3,000 BancNet and Megalink ATMs in the country.
About 85 percent of the Filipino immigrants and OFWs coursed their remittances through bank channels.
Janjiv Vohra, newly appointed Citigroup country officer, reiterated the bank’s goal to further grow its corporate and investment market this year. “We continue the same momentum this year,” he told reporters.
Touching on the bank’s corporate social responsibility program, Vohra said Citibank will focus on education. Last week, Citigroup provided P1 million grant to Sa Aklat Sisikat Foundation, a flagship program of the SAS Reading program, for the implementation of book donations to nine public elementary schools in San Juan, Metro Manila.
On the business side, Vohra informed that the bank is still integrating its savings bank.
Last year, Citibank N.A. acquired local thrift bank Insular Savings Bank.
Citibank’s presence in the key provinces, particularly on payment and service transactions, has expanded from the current 6 branches to 42 branches.
Citibank will fully absorb Insular Savings Bank within a two-year period.
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