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Date Today :
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| PR-BSM-019-2008 |
| 31 March 2008 |
ARROYO RECEPTION WITH HONGKONG FILIPINO COMMUNITY WILL FEATURE DBP’s PESO HEDGING PROGRAM AND LAND BANK’s i-NET NEGOSYO AND OFW CASH CARD
HONGKONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION (via PLDT) – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will kick off her three-day working visit here from March 30 (Sunday) to April 1 (Tuesday) with an evening cocktail reception for HK’s Filipino community with whom she will share new administration programs to help out Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
The reception -- which President Arroyo will host at the Tiffin
Lounge of the Grand Hyatt Hotel where she will be staying with First
Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo – will feature a presentation by the
Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) about its Peso Hedging
Program, and by the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) about its
“i-Net Negosyo” program and OFW Cash Card.
The DBP’s Peso Hedging Program consists of the “Peso Insurance” and
“Peso Protect,” where “OFWs will have the opportunity to mitigate
the effects of the Philippine peso appreciation vis-à-vis their US
dollar remittances or the equivalent in US dollars,” according to
the DBP.
Peso Insurance is “an agreement where the OFWs can sell their US dollars at prevailing exchange rate on maturity or at the selected protection rate if the peso appreciates and the OFW pays an insurance fee.”
On the other hand, Peso Protect is “an agreement whereby the
exchange rate (forward rate) at which OFWs will sell their US
dollars in the future is already determined beforehand, and the OFW
pays no fee but has to place a hold-out deposit refundable after the
delivery of the contract amount to the DBP.”
The DBP also has an “i-Net Negosyo” program which is a “loan
facility offered to eligible OFWs for the setting up of a mini
‘internet station’ via SMART wireless broadband or other telecom
internet service provider offering similar packages.”
Meanwhile, the LBP has its “affordable” Long-Term Negotiable
Certificate of Deposit (LTNCD) “requiring a minimum investment of
only P20,000 while having a high-yielding interest compared to other
existing savings or time deposits.”
The LBP also has its
OFW Cash Card which it dubs as a “safe, convenient, fast and
affordable way that the OFWs can send their remittances to the
Philippines.”
PGMA’s first working day here following her party’s arrival tomorrow
at 5 p.m. at the Hongkong International Airport will then be capped
by the President’s having coffee with the ‘GMA Pa Rin’ group at the
presidential suite.
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