month of a new deposit instrument designed to ease the impact of fluctuations in currency

rates on the remittances of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

The Long-Term Negotiable Certificates of Deposit scheme was presented by the Land Bank

of the Philippines as investment opportunities for OFWs during the President's meeting with

the Filipino community at the Madinat Jumeirah Hotel here Sunday.

Land Bank president Gilda Pico said the flotation of the instrument in P20,000 denomination

has a five-and-a-half- and 10-year maturity periods, and will yield an annual interest of 6.25

and 6.88 percent, respectively.

An OFW who invests P20,000 in the new deposit instrument will earn an interest of P8,056

 in five-and-a-half years and P12,760 in 10 years, Pico said.

She said the launch of the deposit instrument this March will be carried out through a public

offering.

In her speech during her meeting with the Filipino community here, the President said the

instrument would greatly help OFWs, who bear the brunt of the strong peso, and help them

not only as OFWs but overseas Filipino investors (OFIs) as well.

The forthcoming launch of the new deposit instrument is only one of the steps being

taken by the President to soften the blow on the OFWs' income arising from the strong peso.

She has also launched the Tindahang Pinoy under the One Town, One Product program of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) that would enable OFWs earn extra income as