BSP warns against fraudulent schemes, documents misusing its name

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) urges the public to stay vigilant against fraudulent activities offering financial products and services that misuse the name of the BSP or its officials. 

These illegal financial schemes deceive the public by showing them falsified documents with the BSP’s name and logo, or the name and signature of a BSP official. 
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Perpetuators falsely claim that these documents are issued or endorsed by the BSP. Examples of these falsified documents are “assurance letters,” “Security System IT Department Renewal Request for OTP PIN Code with TSS,” “Confirmation of Beneficiary Bank,” “Terms of Loan Contract,” and certifications for loans, deposits, withdrawals, fund transfers, credit cards, money changing, investments or insurance. 

Perpetuators also often attempt to obtain their victim’s personal information (e.g., bank account details, passwords, and other confidential data) or ask for advance payments, with an unusual sense of urgency. 

The BSP reiterates that it does not authorize or endorse individuals or firms to collect “fees” or payments purportedly for anti-money laundering clearance, taxes, insurance, and other fabricated charges. Legitimate financial regulators, law enforcement agencies, and financial institutions do not ask for this type of sensitive information through unsolicited calls, e-mails, or text messages. 
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To protect oneself against fraudsters misrepresenting the BSP, the public is advised to be alert against the following:

• ​Advertisements or offers of loans with low interest rates and flexible payment plans allegedly “approved” or “guaranteed” by the BSP;
• Urgent requests for fees or payments to release loan funds or to “complete the process;”
• Documents, such as “Confirmation of Beneficiary Bank” and “Assurance Letter,” misusing the BSP’s name; and
• Poor grammar, wrong spellings, and incorrect agency names or logos.

The BSP urges the public who receive such documents or communications to:

• Ignore and do not engage with the sender;
• Do not provide personal or financial information; and
• Report the incident immediately to the BSP via e-mail address at [email protected] or telephone number (+632) 8811-1277 or 8811-1BSP.

If the financial account has been compromised, the BSP advises the public to immediately contact their bank or e-money issuer through its official channels. The public may also report scammers to the following:

• Philippine National Police at https://pnp.gov.ph/contact-us-3/
• National Bureau of Investigation: https://nbi.gov.ph/report-to-nbi/  ​