During Monday’s plenary session, Senator Grace Poe, chair of the Senate banks, financial institutions and currencies committee, endorsed for plenary approval Senate Bill No. 1849 or the proposed Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer (FIST) Act. Similar to the two Bayanihan laws providing interventions for the country’s COVID-19 response and recovery, Poe said the FIST bill is also a proactive response to the health crisis. The bill intends to help banks manage bad loans, deal with the surge in non-performing assets (NPAs) and rehabilitate struggling businesses. Salient pointsUnder the bill, Poe said financial institutions will be allowed to offload non-performing assets to FIST corporations.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer September 28, 2020 10:18 UTC