BSP Urges Financial Institutions to Strengthen Systems Against Vote Buying or Selling

​The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has issued a memorandum to BSP-supervised financial institutions (BSFIs) to strengthen their surveillance and monitoring systems against vote buying and selling ahead of the May 2025 elections.

​BSP Memorandum No. M-2025-006, signed on 23 March 2025, specifically instructs BSFIs to take steps to counter the abuse or misuse of digital channels, such as online banking and mobile wallet applications, for vote buying and selling. 

More generally, the BSP instructed BSFIs to ensure that customer onboarding processes, fraud management systems (FMS), and account and transaction monitoring settings can mitigate the possible influx of fraudulent accounts and transactions during the election season. 

The BSP suggested that BSFIs watch for red flags, such as a surge in account registrations in areas known for vote buying or selling, large cash transactions during the election period, unusual transaction patterns, and high volume/value in cash-in or cash-out channels.

The BSP memorandum, similar to memoranda issued in previous election cycles, responds to the call from the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) through Resolution No. 11104, dated 28 January 2025, for stricter mechanisms against vote buying and selling. 

The BSP is collaborating with COMELEC and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to address election-related vote buying or selling via financial platforms.

Suspected unlawful transactions can be reported to:

PNP National Headquarters
Camp General Crame, EDSA Quezon City 1110 
[email protected]
(+632) 8723-0401 local 3696
 
OR
 
National Bureau of Investigation
NBI Building, Taft Avenue, Ermita, Manila 1000
[email protected]
(+632) 8523-8231 to 38